Mass Effect 3: Beauty and the Beast
by W.A.R1989
Summary: This is it, the time the hero has been waiting for, the reapers are here. And he will do every thing in his power to defeat them, but what will be the cost of such a victory? Third and final part. Recommend reading part one, part two, and Before the storm, before reading part 3. UPDATED FOR CORRECTIONS.
1. Chapter 1: The Fall of Earth pt1

_**Mass Effect 3: Beauty and the Beast**_

**Chapter 1: The Fall of Earth pt.1**

_**Three Months Ago-Luna**_

_Luna, Earth's moon, in the early days of space exploration the moon was an early source of helium-3, Luna is now mined for materials used in space habitat construction. Two dozen major stations have been constructed at Earth's L4 and L5 Lagrange points, all from lunar resources. Anderson came to the base due Hackett finding something, when he got there the people was working frantically to find out why their posts were going dark. "How bad is it?" Anderson said._

_"Bad, we just lost contact with our deep-space outpost, they were keeping tabs on the Batarians, making sure they didn't try anything" Hackett said._

_"Did we get anything?"_

_"One, a massive blip on long-range sensors" he said. "Whatever it was, it just wiped out the Batarian homeworld…"_

_Anderson frowned, the Hegemony had very capable soldiers, for the whole homeworld to be wiped out had to be immensely powerful. He didn't want to believe, but it seems the day of reckoning was upon them. "Is this what Shepherd warned us about?"_

_Hackett sighed. "I'd bet my life on it"_

_"How long do we have?"_

_"Not long, I've sent word and the fleets are mobilizing" Hackett said. "You know what you have to do…"_

_"God help us all…"_

_**Now-Downtown Toronto**_

"Owowow!" Shepherd said in pain.

"Stay still you bosh'tet, we're almost done" Tali said annoyed.

It had been months since Shepherd's trial and things were looking up, Ambassador Osoba couldn't find anything linking Shepherd for the Bahak incident a year ago. And the spectre was released from hold, using some money that he had saved up, he bought a decent sized apartment for him and Tali, sure his Quarian lover couldn't take off her suit as often as she wanted, but they together that was all that mattered.

"Just have to connect these two wires, and…done" She said. "How does your arm feel, Wayne?" Shepherd got up and punched the air, and smiled. While they were enjoying their lives for once, they were also preparing for the coming invasion. In fact Tali over the last couple of months have improved her suit as well as improving Shepherd's arm. Her suit was now black and grey, it was a little more bulky than usual due to armor plating, and her mask had been reinforced with armor plating so it wouldn't shatter in a fire fight.

"Baby, you are a miracle and a genius, it feels light as a feather" he said. "I don't know how I'm going to repay you…"

Tali came close to him. "Well, I know of one way…." Just as she was about to pounce her boyfriend, a knock came on the door. She sighed, as Shepherd chuckled and kissed her.

"Hold that thought" Shepherd went to the door and opened it, in front of the door was a large human. "James, how have you been?" After being released, the spectre had been looking for an apartment near the HQ in case they needed to bug out when the reapers came. James offered the same complex that he lived in, and Shepherd agreed, the apartment complex was the only 20th century style apartment complex in the area left, due to the whimsical style of the apartment Tali took an instant liking it. As for Kasumi and Lia, they stayed a few blocks away from them, although Kasumi at times snuck back on to the Normandy at times, calling it practice.

"Great, great, Loco" he said. Ever since Shepherd was released from holding, James had called him Loco, because in his words, he done some crazy things, but compare to Shepherd, he's sane. "Lia's doing fine too, talking ship with Cortez; sometimes I think they're speaking another language…"

Shepherd chuckled. "Don't I know it…" He was rewarded with a pillow to his head by Tali. "So what's up, I guessing you're not hear to shoot the shit"

James got serious. "Anderson wanted to talk to you, says it's important…" Shepherd and Tali looked at each other.

"Okay, I'll get ready…"

_**Alliance HQ**_

Shepherd, Tali, and James went to meet Anderson, when they got there all the personnel were frantically working, the air was thick with tension and nervousness. Shepherd had a bad feeling about this, so much so that he told James to get Lia and Cortez and get to the Normandy. He didn't know why, but he nodded and left. Anderson came up and shook his hand.

"Shepherd, how's civilian life been treating you?" Anderson asked.

"Fine, the food's better for one" Anderson chuckled.

"Hello Tali'Zorah, been keeping Shepherd out of trouble?"

Tali smiled. "I try"

"Anderson, what's up?" Shepherd asked.

Anderson grew serious. "Hackett is mobilizing the fleets" he said. "Something big is coming to Earth, and it's got Alliance Command spooked"

"Keelah…The Reapers?" Tali gasped.

"Don't know, not for certain…"

Shepherd frowned. "What else could it be?"

Anderson sighed. "If I knew that…"

"If it is them, we're not ready, not by a long shot"

"Tell that to the defense committee…" he said.

"The committee is waste of time, the reapers don't care about diplomacy" Tali said dryly. The Quarian had not really forgiven the committee for throwing her boyfriend under the bus.

"They're just scared, none of them have seen what you two have seen" Anderson said. "Hell, Shepherd spoke to one"

"Don't remind me…" Shepherd said grimly.

_**A year ago-Bahak System**_

_"Harbinger…"_

_"SHEPHERD, YOU ARE BECOMING AN ANNOYANCE" it said._

_Shepherd smirked. "Good, then I guess I'm doing my job"_

_"YOU FIGHT AGAINST INEVITABILITY. DUST STRUGGLING AGAINST COSMIC WINDS" Harbinger said._

_"YOU SEE THIS AS A VICTORY, A STAR SYSTEM SACRIFICED, BUT EVEN NOW, YOUR CIVILIZATION IS DOOMED TO FALL, YOU LEADERS WILL BEG TO SERVE US"_

_"You think we're scared of you, but we're not, we will fight regardless"_

_"KNOW THIS AS YOU DIE IN VAIN; YOUR TIME WILL COME. YOUR SPECIES WILL FALL"_

_"You underestimate just how vicious and crazy my people can be when we are backed into a corner" Shepherd said. "So let me educate you, we poisoned our air and water to weed out the weak! We set off fission bombs in our biosphere at the time! We nailed our God to a stick! In layman's terms: don't fuck with the human race!"_

_"CONFIDENCE BORN OF IGNORANCE, PREPARE FOR THE ARRIVAL"_

Shepherd lowered his head, he did what he had to delay the reapers, but he had to kill thee hundred thousand batarians. Sometimes he would have nightmares, seeing the colonists, their dead hands reaching for him pulling him in with him so the spectre could die with them. He wished he could go back in time and stop himself bur he couldn't. Tali gripped his hand. "It wasn't your fault, Wayne" Tali said sadly. "It was the only way"

"I still pressed the button, just to delay the reapers, it's a sin I'll have to carry for the rest of my life" Shepherd said solemnly. They made it to the committee chambers and were met with an old friend. Shepherd had never seen his friend so tired before, the Committee was running him ragged with his errands. He gave a salute.

"Anderson" Kaiden said. He looked at Shepherd and Tali, his eyes perked up a little. "Wayne, Tali, how are you guys?"

"Great, you?"

Kaiden sighed. "It hasn't been easy; I don't how you do it…"

"Keep that head on, Kaiden, we're going to need you" Tali said. Kaiden chuckled tiredly and nodded.

"How did it go, major?" Anderson asked.

Kaiden pinched the bridge of his nose. "Closed lipped as always…getting answers from the Illusive Man was easier" he said annoyed. "Anyway, they're waiting for you"

_**Committee Chambers**_

They went inside; the room was deadly quiet as they awaited Shepherd's advice. Shepherd snorted; the Alliance hadn't needed his advice before, they were so quick to throw him to the wolves to appease the Batarians."Anderson, Shepherd" One of them said. He then looked at Tali. "What is a Quarian doing here?"

"She's with me" Shepherd said.

"Commander Shepherd, this is an Alliance briefing…"

Shepherd glowed blue. "She's. With. Me" he said defiantly. "You may be the committee, but I'm still a spectre I can bring anyone I want"

"O-of course…"

Shepherd calmed. "What's the situation?" As soldier gives the spectre a data pad.

"You tell us, the reports are unlike anything we have ever seen" another said. "Whole colonies have gone dark; we've lost contact with everything beyond the Sol relay"

"Whatever it is, it inconceivably powerful…"

"You brought me here, to confirm what you already know…" Shepherd said. "The reapers are here"

The council looked at each other, really nervous now. It's been three whole years since he had warned him about the reapers, and every time it written off combat stress and now Shepherd's boogeyman was now proven to be real. That was three years that could have been spent building their forces, but they pissed it all away, Shepherd should by angry but anger wouldn't have solve anything. They were at the point of no return, and they had only themselves to blame…"Then…how do we stop them?"

Shepherd frowned. "Stop them? This isn't about winning or losing now, it is about survival" he said. "All they care about is seeing the end of this cycle, if you think you can run, then by all means, run, but you won't get far, you either fight or die"

"But…there must be a way…"

"If we have any chance of surviving, we must all stand together, whatever bullshit we have with the other races ends now"

"That's it? That's our plan?" Someone spoke up.

Tali crossed her arms. "Do you have a better one?" The committee glared at her, a woman at the communication terminal spoke up. She looked incredibly disturbed.

"Admiral, we've lost contact with Luna Base"

Anderson frowned, "The moon? They're that close?"

"Wait, t-there's more…from the UK headquarters" she said. "We have a visual" The screen appeared showing a battle, everyone in the room could hear sounds of battle and then the connection was lost. More screens appeared, each showing a different part of Earth in chaos as the reapers were landing and starting their assault.

"Keelah…" Tali gasped.

"What haven't we heard from Admiral Hackett?" Anderson asked concerned.

"Get a good look at our enemy, because this is only the beginning…" The committee looked dejected, defeated, on the one hand, it felt good to break their smug asses, but on the other hand, he knew how they felt. Anderson spoke up,

"Shepherd, we need to get to the Normandy…"

"Agreed" They then heard a sound and the committee turned around, their eyes wide with terror.

"Oh my god…" The sky lit up with red sparks and s reaper descended from the clouds. Its arms opened and fired on the city below and then the red beam came closer to the building. Shepherd's eyes went wide and raised his arms creating a biotic barrier to cover Tali and Anderson. The red beam impacted the room, turning the committee room into rubble; glass shattered and was thrown with great force. The committee was instantly vaporized by the beam and their desk and people were thrown across the room. The barrier held for a moment until the force of the blast pushed Shepherd to the limit. The team was pushed back, Shepherd hit wall hard, blacking out.

Moments later he heard a voice. "Wayne, please get up…"

"Shepherd" Shepherd got up, holding his head in pain.

"Anyone get the number of that truck just hit me…" he said in a daze. He looked around, the room was a mess everything was on fire, bodies were scattered across the room some burnt to a crisp from the beam, and some was impaled at by the debris. The way they came in was blocked by debris, the window had a huge hole in it, Legion was right windows were structural weaknesses. Tali helped him up.

"Are you okay?" She asked concerned.

"Yeah, you?"

"No suit rupture, I'm fine" Anderson ran to them.

"Anderson, you okay?"

"A small scratch, here" Anderson handed Shepherd and Tali a pistol. "Come on, we got to get moving" Shepherd and Tali nodded. He opened his com.

"This is Admiral Anderson, is anyone there?"

"We read you, Anderson" Kaiden said.

"What's your status?"

"I'm on the Normandy doing some clean up, as soon as we're done, we will meet you at the landing zone" he said.

"Roger" Anderson made his way to Tali and Shepherd. They were looking the reapers as they attacked the city, they were finally here, all the fights they been in had prepared them for this day. Part him felt relived, no more waiting…but part of him wondered if he can stop them, after all no civilization had been able to stop them before…with that kind of track record he didn't feel all that confident.

"Keelah, they're massive" she said. "Can we win this, Wayne?"

Shepherd sighed. "I don't know, Tali, but I'm sure as hell going to give it my best shot" Tali gripped his hand.

"You mean we, right? You won't do this alone"

Shepherd tightens his grip on Tali's hand. "Right"

"Shepherd, we need to get to the spaceport, the Normandy will pick us up there" Shepherd and Tali nodded and they jumped off the ledge. They ran across the roof heading towards the spaceports.

_**Mars**_

"After her!" Liara was breathing hard from running from the soldiers; they came out of nowhere, Cerberus troopers. She was taking a shower, until the alarms sounded and she heard shooting. Within hours Cerberus had taken control of the station, killing anyone who got in their way. "There she is"

Liara froze the soldier with a stasis field and threw a warp field at him, causing an explosion. Some soldiers found her and opened fire, but missed and was lifted up by a singularity field and shot. After she's finished, she ran, there were still more when she turned to corner. She entered a dark room and went up the vents, that keep them off her for a while but she needed back up.

"I got to contact Hackett…"

_**Welcome to Mass Effect 3: Beauty and the Beast! The third and final act of the B&TB saga, what do you think?**_

_**As always Review and Comment. **_


	2. Chapter 2: The Fall of Earth pt2

**Chapter 2: The Fall of Earth pt2**

_**Downtown Toronto**_

The city was in chaos, scream filled the air as people were trying to run from the reaper troops. When ordinary citizens weren't dying by the shipload from the reapers carpet bombing the city, they were being taken by their servants to be processed. The military tried all they could to fight back, but they never faced anything like the machines before, the Alliance's most top of the line weapons bounced of them like rubber to the wall and then they were cut down like they were nothing.

"Keelah…this is awful…" Lia said.

"I know….but all we can do is get to the Normandy and hope everyone is okay" Cortez said grimly. They hated not being able to do anything, but reaper troops littered the streets helping the civilians was a good way to get killed or captured themselves. "Okay cleared, let's go"

James, Cortez, and Lia ran across the alley avoiding the main street as they were littered with husks, however the reapers had decided to cut off the all exits. As they got closer the spaceport, a group of husks blocked their way and surrounded them. They bunched up together so the husks could not attack from behind they took out the pistols they took from the soldiers the husks killed. The husks attacked and they fired on the husks, but they kept coming clawing at them, the husks were faster than before as one of them latched on to James.

"Jimmy!" Lia ran to him, but one of the husks started to swipe at Lia until Cortez shot it in the head. The husks continued to swarm them, as Cortez and Lia kept trying to get to James. Meanwhile James was struggling to get the husks off of him all while it clawed his faces, the large human finally overpowered the husk and dropped to the ground and stomped on its head. His face was covered in blood and bruises as he continued the fight them off, the husks wouldn't let up; at this point they would be exhausted before they stopped coming. Just as hope seemed to be lost, a biotic explosion wiped out half of the horde, and the husks shifted their attention to their need target, another biotic explosion blew the husks back. The dust clears, to reveal Kaiden.

"Slim, you're a sight for sore eyes" James said tiredly. Cortez went to help James up.

"Are you guys okay?" He asked.

"We've been better…." Lia said. "Where's Shepherd and Tali?"

"Last I check, they were meeting with the Committee, then they reapers attacked" Kaiden said. "The room they were in was completely trashed…"

"Are they…?" She asked concerned.

Kaiden shook his head. "I don't think so; I didn't find their bodies they may have escaped"

_**Committee Building ruins**_

Shepherd, Tali and Anderson was walking along the high-rise getting to the spaceport, so far it went well, or rather as well as it could be considering their predicament "Move!" Shepherd said as the team ran. They just missed the Reaper's weapon cutting the walkway in half.

"Keelah, if we were late just one second later…" Tali said grimly.

"How do you stop something so powerful?" Anderson asked.

"When I know, I'll tell you…lets go" Shepherd said. The jumped to the roof of the building, then they heard a growl.

"Husks!" The mindless creatures swarmed them, Shepherd used his singularity field to lift them out the ground and Anderson fired a concussive blast at them, making them fall to their deaths. Tali summoned her drone, to keep them off the team and a defense drone to keep the husks off her. The drone lit the husks on fire with its new flamethrower program, more husks surrounded her drone and hit it, and exploded, clearing the way for the team.

"Major do you read me?"

"We're on the Normandy, but we have Oculus on our tails, we may be late coming to you" Kaiden said. "Is Wayne and Tali with you?"

"Yes, we're making our way to rendezvous point"

"We'll try and get there….Alenko out"

"I hope the crew is doing okay…" Tali said.

"Kaiden's in charge, they'll be fine" Shepherd said. They then heard another group of growls. "Shit!"

_**The Normandy**_

Kaiden and the others made it back to the Normandy after Kaiden cleared the way to the spaceport. Kaiden then order the James to go see Chakwas for his face, and Lia to get to Engineering to help Adams and the others. The Normandy took off to get to Shepherd, however things were not that simple, they were pursued by the reaper drones, the Oculus. The oculus fired on them, but the Normandy swerved around the buildings hoping to make it crash, but the drone didn't fall for that. The reapers must have made them smarter since their time beyond the Omega-4 relay. Joker activated the main guns and shot two of them down, until four more took their place. "Shake them off, Joker!" Kaiden said.

"I'm trying to, these bastards are persistent" he said. EDI spoke up.

"Jeff, destroyer class reaper, ahead it is firing" she said.

"Everyone hang on!" The Normandy took a sharp right turn, barely missing the reaper's weapon. The Oculus were not as lucky as the red beam sheared through the drones. When it seemed they were cleared, Joker opened the com.

"Adams, is the stealth system ready?"

"Yeah, just give us a second and there…!" The indicator gave the green light and Joker pressed a button, and the Normandy disappeared from the reaper's sensors. The team breathes a sigh of relief, not they could get to Shepherd without interruptions. The Normandy went low for maximum invisibility.

"Let's get the others"

"And what about civilians…?" Joker asked grimly.

Kaiden hesitated. "We can't help them, I wish to god we could, but we can't"

Joker sighed. "Got it…"

_**Toronto**_

The team made it out of the ruins of the Alliance HQ, and went into a ruined building with a busted door. Tali went to the door to get it opened that was when the husk came in, Shepherd and Anderson were fighting swarms of husks. The first thing the husks did was go after Tali, Anderson blasted its leg with a concussive shot. The horde came in through the window and the doors, Shepherd used his singularity field block the door way and blasted them back with warp field. More climbed up the building and ran in to the room, Anderson pushed them out of the room, while Shepherd sealed the entrance with his cryo blasts. However they could hear the growls and howls of the husks, the blockade wouldn't last long.

"Whenever you're ready, rookie" Shepherd said.

"Just one more minute, Wayne" Tali worked her fingers on her omni-tool and the door, only for a husk to grab her leg, she screamed. The quarian tried to kick the creature off of her , but it was pulling her in.

"Tali!" Shepherd brought out his omni-blade, carved into the head of the husk. "You alright?"

"Yeah…" She said shakily. They then heard the sound of the barricade breaking and the husks flooded into the room.

"Shepherd, I'm surrounded!" Anderson said. Tali summoned her drone, and Shepherd froze the husks and shatters them against the wall. The drone lit the husks on fire while Anderson fired off a concussive blast on the husk that was on fire, the husk exploded and spread the fire to the other husks. Shepherd finished them of with his omni-blades. "Thanks"

Shepherd nodded. "Anytime"

They moved to a narrow ledge, they hugged the wall and went slow so they would not fall. Anderson sighed. "This is a goddamned mess" he said. "Every minute those machines are here, thousands of innocents die"

"I know, no matter how much we try, but we can't save them all" he said solemnly.

"They hit so fast, I thought we'd have time" Anderson said. "We knew they were coming, and they still tore through us, we can't do this alone"

"We need to go to the Citadel and talk to the council" Tali said. "It's the only way"

"Agreed, but will they listen? Me and the council are on pretty bad terms"

"The reapers will be everywhere, they're going have to let go of their petty grudges"

"Worth a try, otherwise we're screwed" They ran out of the burning building, went into the open area outside, Anderson raised his com.

"Kaiden, we're in sight of the spaceport, we'll be there in three minutes"

"Standing by…oh god!"

"Kaiden, what is it?" Anderson asked.

"That reaper is going to take down that dreadnought, Joker evasive maneuvers, now!" The reaper fired on the dreadnought, a blinding flash appeared. The destruction of the dreadnought caused a violent shockwave, which made the platform unstable, it collapsed and the team rolled down to the ground below.

"Everyone okay?"

"We're fine, Wayne…" Shepherd helped Tali and Anderson up. Anderson raised his comm.

"Normandy, we're going to reroute, do you copy?" There was only static. "Normandy? Do you read?"

"Do you think they were in the explosion?" Tali asked worriedly.

"She's fine; the old girl can take more than that" Shepherd said

"I hope you're right…"

Shepherd looked around, and saw two men all wearing Alliance uniforms one of them had their leg caught under the debris while the other was administering first aid. "Anderson, friendlies" They jumped down to their level.

"You guys alright?"

"Get down, they'll see you" the medic said.

"Who?" A gunshot rang, and the team went cover, Shepherd looked over, and his eyes went wide. The enemy had the top body of batarian, but the bottom half was that of a human, their left arm was gone and replaced by a cannon. Their bodies had the familiar lights and circuitry of reaper tech. "My god…" Anderson spoke up.

"Khar'shan, was hit right out of the gate by the reapers, we had scouts to keep an eye on them, when we lost contact with them"

"Not even the batarian's deserved this fate" Tali said. The batarian husks howled as they started to fire, unlike the ordinary husks they have fought, they enough intelligence to use cover and try to flank them. Shepherd froze the first batarian-husk and shattered it with his incineration blast, Anderson shot another one in the head and the husks stopped what they were doing went to their fallen ally.

"Oh Keelah….are they eating the corpses?" She asked in horror. While these Cannibals continued to feast on the dead husks flesh, something was happening to their bodies, crimson tendrils shot out of their bodies and wrapped around their bodies and hardened. They got stronger when they eat their fallen comrades. Shepherd started to shoot them, but the armor they grew repelled the bullets

"Rookie, keep firing" Shepherd said. Anderson fired a concussive shot and pushed the husk into the water. When they all died, they went back to the solders.

"Do you have a radio? We're trying to contact our ship." Anderson said.

"No, but there's one in the gunship, up ahead, but it's crawling with those things"

"Stay here son; we'll get you out of here" Shepherd and Tali nodded and lifted the debris from the solder's leg. "Are you going to be okay here?"

"Yeah, just go and good luck!" They went to the fallen gunship, and Anderson called the Normandy to their location. However, the ship was busy dealing with more Occulus pursuing them, which meant they would have to hold the line before they come. The reapers dropped in the hordes of Cannibals that started firing at them. Shepherd threw a throw field that then split into two and hit two cannibals into the water. The team had to be careful not to leave them on the field when they killed them otherwise they'll try to eat them and get stronger.

"Tali'Zorah, drone, keep them off of us" Anderson said. "Shepherd, grenades on your side"

"Right" While Tali's drone behind the husks while Shepherd threw the grenades and it lifted the cannibals in the air, he then threw a throw field and they hit the water. More cannibals fell down on the battlefield, this time behind them. The battle was hard fought, and the team was almost out of ammo, until the husks were blasted, and the Normandy appeared.

"About time"

"Let's go!" The team ran to ship, there to greet them was Kaiden and Kasumi.

"Welcome back, Wayne, Tali"

"Good to be back" Anderson spoke up.

"Shepherd…"

"Come on!"

Anderson shook his head. "I'm not going"

"Like hell, Anderson!" Shepherd said.

"You saw those men back there, and there are millions more like them, my place is here"

"We're in this fight together"

Anderson sighed. "It's a fight we can't win, we need help" he said. "We need everyone, every race and their ships to even have a chance, talk to the council"

"Anderson, you know them, they won't listen!"

"Then make them, now go! That's an order!'

Shepherd sighed. "Yes sir…I'll back for you with all the fleets I have, until then don't you dare die, old man"

"I don't plan on it, good luck, little punk…" he said with a smirk.

Shepherd went back inside the ship as the Normandy took off, Shepherd saw shuttles fly in to rescue the civilians, they went in hoping to get off planet, it may have been small, but there was still some hope in this war. However all that was dashed when he saw the reaper behind them, its weapon about to charge.

"Nononono….don't do it…" The shuttle took off, and the reaper opened fired. "DON"T DO IT!" The beam cut the shuttle in half and blew up, killing every man, woman and child. He could only watch as the reaper continued its slaughter, the civilians ran for safety but they vaporized by the red beam. When the dust cleared, no one was left, just bodies and the cannibals and husks came in to feast on the remains. The reaper flew away, like nothing happened to continue to raze the city to the ground. He then felt a hand gripped his, it was Tali with a look of concern.

"Wayne, we have to go…" Tali said softly.

"Damn it…" he choked. "All…all hand on deck…let's…let's get out of here…" Everyone nodded leaving only Tali and Shepherd.

"Wayne…"

"They will pay….Tali….those bastards will pay….."


	3. Chapter 3: Secret of Mars pt1

**Chapter 3: Secret of Mars pt.1**

The Normandy crew was exhausted, but physically and emotionally, especially Shepherd, leaving Anderson on Earth was not the easiest choice. He felt like he was leaving a friend to die again, just like Ashley on Virmire. Shepherd was in his room, looking out in the cosmos, a million thoughts running in his head, now that the reapers were here all the uncertainty he had bottled up had come to the surface.

He knew the reaper were going to be tough enemies, but the way they tore through Earth's fleet…the war was feeling hopeless and they only started… And then was the whole with Council, will they help? They've never been generous in the past and with reapers breathing down their door he doubted they would listen to what he had to say. He always thought that things would fall into place in due time, but now he weren't so sure, things don't fall into place with the reapers, you either do or you die.

Shepherd sighed. "You'd probably laugh at me for having such doubts, eh Ash?" A knock was heard on the door, Tali came in and wrapped her arms the spectre's waist. She leaned her head into his shoulder.

"Wayne…" Tali said softly.

"I'm fine, rookie, it's just been draining today, that's all…" he said. Tali knew that was a lie for her sake, she knew he was worried about Anderson on Earth.

"He's going to be okay, after all Anderson was your mentor, and you'll see him again" she said.

"I hope so…" he said. "How's the crew?"

"The same or worse than you, James was angry about leaving until Lia calmed him down" she explained. "Kasumi has been unusually quiet; Kaiden is trying to keep it together, but..."

"He just saw his hometown get burned to the ground, I'll talk to him later" The comm broke through.

"Commander, you need to get to the com room, Hackett wants to speak to you"

"Got it, Joker" Shepherd said getting up. Tali put her hand on his arm.

"You know, you can talk to me, anytime, right?"

Shepherd kissed her helmet and smiled a little. "I know…"

_**The War Room**_

Shepherd went downstairs; the Normandy had changed a lot in just a few months, for one the Armory was no longer on the second deck, but the shuttle bay. Which was fine with him, at least he didn't have to stop on the second floor just to get weapons, it was now all one stop. The science room was gone now and incorporated with the larger med-bay. And the conference room was moved into the former science room which made its old room and the old armory into barracks for the CIC crewmembers. Shepherd walked into a new room aptly named the 'war room', a command center of sorts to plan out their route in the war, something told the spectre that he would be using this room a lot. Inside was a central computer that gave updates on the war effort, in the back was the Quantum Entanglement communication room. He went inside and presses the button on the terminal. "Shepherd, glad you made off Earth" Hackett said.

"Thank you, sir, Anderson decided to…stay behind and fight"

"That sounds like David, always the first to go into the fire, brave man"

"I know…How things on your front?" he asked.

"Heavy losses, the 5th and 6th sacrificed themselves to help me escape" Shepherd lowered his head when her heard that. "Their forces is overwhelming, there's just no way to defeat them conventionally…"

"Anderson's ordered me to the Citadel, talk to the council" Shepherd asked.

Hackett nodded. "We'll need them, but I need you over at the outpost on Mars"

"Mars? Why Mars?"

"There is something there that could turn the tides, but I can't speak more, the reapers might be listening in…"

"Understood…"

"Contact me soon, Hackett out" Shepherd raised the com.

"Joker, get us to Mars"

"Mars? What's on Mars?" he asked.

"Don't know yet, but he said something on the planet is key to defeating the reapers"

Joker was silent for a minute. "Roger that"

_Once considered a prospect for terraforming and colonization, the discovery of faster than light travel turned Mars into a quiet backwater. Its southern pole is a historical preserve centered on the Prothean ruins found there. Immigration and development are restricted as the search for Prothean artifacts continues.-Codex_

The Normandy exited FTL above the red planet, the stealth systems were engaged to hide themselves from any reapers in the area. Shepherd, Kaiden, and James made their way into the shuttle as the docking bay's doors opened up as the shuttle's engine started up and they flew out of the Normandy approaching the planet's surface.

"I've tried to contact Mars on secure channels, no one's answering" Joker said.

"Reaper activity?" Shepherd asked.

"None"

"The base is operational; it could be that the inhabitants were evacuated" She said.

"Maybe, we'll know soon, but be ready just in case…"

"Aye-aye!" Joker and EDI said. In the front of their view, was the Prothean Archives, the shuttle rocked lightly as they got closer to the complex. Since they couldn't contact the people inside, they had no access to their hanger, the shuttle landed not far from the base. Shepherd and the others put on their helmets and loaded up their weapons, the spectre looks at James.

"Any contact?" he asked.

"Still nothing, Loco, but there's a huge storm heading our way" James said. "A half hour away"

"We'll need to finish this up fast…" Kaiden said. Shepherd nodded, the shuttle bay door opened and a huge gust of wind hit them almost causing them to fall back. Off in the distance was a huge storm, Kaiden was right they needed to hurry; they couldn't afford to lose communication with the Normandy. They started their trek to the archives, as they were walking to the base he looked back at Kaiden and James. They had been quiet since landing.

"You two alright?" he asked.

"Just thinking about family, wondering if they're alright…" Kaiden said solemnly.

"Me too, you think we whatever we find will be enough?" James asked.

"Don't know, Hackett seemed pretty sure, don't worry, you'll see your families again" Shepherd said. "I promise…" James spoke up.

"A body" He came close to examine it. "Armor riddled with bullet holes, no reaper did this…"

"That explains the base not answering" Shepherd said. They then heard a gunshot, and took out their weapons and went to cover. They saw men in gray and gold armor, and an Alliance soldier, Shepherd and Kaiden recognized the color; it was the same color of Cerberus. The solider was on his knees with his hand behind his back; one of them pointed his gun in front of the soldier and pulled the trigger. The soldier slumps to the ground.

"Holy shit, they're executing them!" James whispered.

"James how good is your aim?" Shepherd asked. James looked at him.

"Pretty good, why?"

Shepherd took a lift grenade and threw it at the Cerberus troopers; the troopers looked at the grenade curiously and the grenade exploded and lifted them off the ground. The troopers started to open fire on the team, one of the troopers threw out a grenade, and Shepherd got out of cover before the grenade could explode. He activated his tech armor went to the cover on the side. "James deal with ones in the air, Kaiden, you're with me, kill the stragglers"

"Right"

Kaiden took out his rifle and fired on the troopers; while James killed the one is in the air with his carnage. Kaiden used his cryo blast on the trooper to his left, but he saw it coming and rolled out the way, Shepherd took control of the trooper to his right, and the controlled trooper fired on the trooper Kaiden missed. As the team approached the archives, more reinforcements came from the north and the controlled trooper opened fired on his former allies until he was shot in the head. Shepherd took out his arch projector and fired, frying every trooper in the current's path. The path was cleared for them to enter.

"Those guys were Cerberus, weren't they?" James asked.

"Looks like it…" the spectre said.

"What are they doing here?" Kaiden asked. "A full out attack isn't like them"

"One way to find out…" Shepherd said. As the came closer, they saw three rovers all with Cerberus logos on them parked at the entrance. To the right of the rovers was the entrance to the archive, the elevator door was wide open. Shepherd frowned, no way had they forced their way in; they would lose a lot of people doing that.

"This reeks of a sleeper agent…" Kaiden said.

"Inside job? Who the hell would want to help these guys?" James asked.

"You'd be surprised how people want to help Cerberus willingly…" Shepherd said.

James raised a brow. "Speaking from experience?" he asked.

"My case was…special…come on let's go" They went inside the base, it was quiet, too quiet for their liking, and they kept their guards up. They heard thuds and gunshots, they got to cover. Shepherd looked out of cover and saw an asari in a white and blue Alliance armor being chased by Cerberus troopers, she threw back a singularity and the troopers floated helplessly, the asari took out her gun and shot them making them fall to the ground, she came closer and finished them, two shots to the head for both. She turned, he instantly recognized her.

"Liara?" The asari jumped and raised her gun. "Whoa Liara! It's me" Shepherd said. He and the team came out of cover.

"Shepherd? Kaiden?" she asked. "Thank goddess you're alive!"

"Good to see you too, Liara" Kaiden said with a smile.

Liara looked at James. "Friend of yours?"

"Oh sorry, this is Lt. James Vega, new member of the Normandy" Shepherd said. "Vega, this is Liara, an original member of the Normandy crew"

Vega shook Liara's hand. "Nice to meet you, Blue"

Liara tilted her head. "Blue?"

"He does that, don't worry about it, what are you doing here? And in Alliance armor?" Kaiden asked.

"I found something that can defeat the reapers, Hackett called me to check it out, as for the armor, couldn't well fight in t-shirt and jeans" she said.

"Looks good on you, so what is this trump card?" Shepherd asked.

"Plans for a prothean device, one that can defeat the reapers"

"I don't get, we've been on this rock for decades, and we just now found it?" James asked.

"It was luck mostly, the scientists were looking around the archives and stumbled upon it" she said. "But they couldn't they translate some of the words, and so Admiral Hackett called me needless to say we found what we were looking for"

The spectre crossed his arms. "Sounds too good to be true, a powerful prothean weapon just lying around? Why didn't they use it on the reapers when they were fighting them?" Shepherd asked.

"It was incomplete; I was close to cracking the clue, when Cerberus attacked"

"So where do we find it?"

"The device itself is in a disclosed location, only me and Hackett knows where it is but the blueprints on how to build it is in the main Archives, at the center of the base" Liara said.

"Easy, if Cerberus hasn't locked it down yet"

"They haven't, though that may change soon" Liara said.

"Why are they here?" Kaiden asked.

"They want the device, you see the protheans came close to defeating the reapers, but ran out of time, anything powerful enough to destroy the reapers…" she said.

"Might be something Cerberus would be interested in" Shepherd said. "Scouting the market for doomsday devices, sounds like them…" A rumble could be felt in the base, and the door at the top was being forced opened.

"Time's up, we got company"

James cracked his knuckles. "Bring it on"

"Not this time, Vega" Shepherd said.

"What?"

"Get back to the shuttle, if Cerberus gets to the archives, I need someone covering the exits" Shepherd said running to the terminal.

"But Loco…"

"No buts, we'll be in there getting to the archives and the Normandy is too far away to help, that leaves you to intercept them" he said. "Now go"

James sighed. "Got it" He walked over to the elevator and the elevator went down, the door up above them opened and in came the Cerberus troopers. The team went to cover behind the machines near them.

"There's that asari bitch!" One of the troopers said. The troopers started firing on them, the ones on top were much more aggressive than the troopers outside and most of that was aimed for the asari. Liara must have really been a thorn in their side. Shepherd whistled.

"You really pissed them off, I'm impressed"

"Wasn't too hard, how's your biotics, by the way?" Liara asked. "Not getting rusty, I hope?" Shepherd got out of cover and trapped them in a singularity field, as they floated helplessly in the air…the spectre threw a splitting throw field that caused a biotic explosion that sent them flying across the room. The battle ended as quickly as it started.

"Does that answer your question?" He asked. The team got to the elevator at the side, but the as soon of the platform went up, it lost power and went down. Shepherd snorted. "Of course they would cut the power. They instead took the emergency ladder to get to the top. "By the way how did Cerberus get in?"

"I don't know, one minute we were getting reports on the reapers the next, chaos" Liara said. "We didn't even realize it was Cerberus, until it was too late"

"Are they working with reapers?" Kaiden asked in disbelief.

"Doubtful, but anything's possible, I guess" The team went deeper into the base.


	4. Chapter 4: Secret of Mars pt2

**Chapter 4: Secret of Mars pt.2**

The team went to the room upstairs, when they opened the door they saw one of the archives' personnel gunned down by a Cerberus trooper. Shepherd and team took cover at the crates ahead while the trooper examined the body. Shepherd frowned they were killing everyone in their way, Cerberus' specialty was infiltration, and as reckless as they were with their experiments…they were not stupid to do an all-out attack on the Alliance. What could have change to embolden them so much? While the trooper examined the body, Shepherd grabbed him and pulled him over the creates, he then killed him quickly with a omni-blade to the head.

That caught the others attention as they started firing on them. "Liara, stasis bubble, trap them!" Shepherd ordered. The troopers were trapped in the hall, Shepherd and Kaiden threw a warp field at them causing a huge explosion.

"It's Shepherd! Kill him!" One of the troopers said. More of the troopers came into the room; one of them threw a grenade. The team scattered to cover as the grenade went off, Shepherd took out his arch projector and stunned them with electric shocks, Kaiden and Liara opened fired while they were down. They made it to a control room, where found more bodies; some lying on the floor and one slumped over the chair. Cerberus didn't even give them a chance to react.

"We'll need access to the pedway, I'll get started" Liara said. The asari got to work on the controls, while Shepherd and Kaiden stood guard. Moments later Liara slammed her fist on the table. "Damn it! Control has been tampered with"

Kaiden made his way to the controls and sat next to her. "I'll see if I can get control…" Shepherd spoke up.

"Liara, that woman, who is she?" Liara and Kaiden looked at the screen to their side; there was a woman in an Alliance uniform, she had short black hair, she looked like she was accessing the data.

"Dr. Eva Core, she was the lead researcher on the data they found, why?" she asked.

Shepherd frowned at the vid; the woman didn't look like she was in a hurry to leave, after she finished with the console she ran away. Maybe she was trying to keep some sensitive data out of Cerberus hands; then again he couldn't be sure with Cerberus. "Nothing, yet, any luck?" he asked Kaiden.

Kaiden sighed. "We've been locked out, whoever did this made sure no one was getting in Cerberus' way"

"Liara, any other way to the Archives?"

"There's construction nearby, a slightly longer route, but we'll reach the same destination" she said.

"Then, let's go" Kaiden and Liara nodded and the team went to the door on their right. Once outside they felt the wind picking up, it looks like they were in there for a while, the storm was getting closer. They went down the ladder, when they got to the bottom, they saw two trams moving, they were in the middle of a fire fight. "What the hell is that?"

"So there were some people left…"Kaiden said.

"They're trying to slow Cerberus down, that tram leads to the Archives, once across, they'll be at the final checkpoint" Liara said.

"Then we need to hurry" Shepherd said. He raised the com, but there was a bunch of static. "James"

"Loco? I can barely hear you"

"Damn, the storm…James, get ready Cerberus is close to the Archives"

"Got it, warmin…" All there was left was static.

"James? James! Damn it!" Shepherd cursed. "Fucking storm cut us off…"

"Let's get inside, we'll be no good if the storm hits us" Kaiden said. Shepherd and Liara nodded. They went to the next area, where a door was open

Liara frowned. "This door shouldn't be open, it's an airlock…"

"Doesn't look like it was forced opened" Kaiden said.

"No, you would have to override security protocols" They went in, it was dark and so the team activated their flashlights. The alarm was blaring loudly. When they got further in, they were met with a grisly sight, bodies all around them. "Goddess…"

"Someone vented the air out of the room, while they were still in here…" Kaiden said disturbed. Shepherd crouched on the floor and frowned, they died trying to claw their way out. He took a deep breath and closed his eyes as memories of when he was spaced became fresh in his mind…the burning of his lungs….the helpless he felt as he drifted aimlessly through space as darkness slowly claimed him. Kaiden put a hand on his shoulder, and he snapped back to reality. Shepherd looked back and his friend had a look of concern on his face.

Shepherd sighed. "I'm alright…"

"This is barbaric, even for Cerberus…" Liara said. They then heard sounds coming from the other side; it was sound of the shutters opening.

"Kill the lights" Shepherd said. They turned off the flashlights and got to cover to see more troopers. They didn't notice the team, which was perfect for Shepherd. "Liara, stasis bubble" Liara froze them in place allowing Kaiden to detonate it with a warp field. Shepherd gunned down the stragglers with his Vindicator.. They entered the next area; Liara looked at one of the dead troopers and gave a look of disgust, which was not lost on the others.

"I'm guessing some of those people was friends?" Kaiden asked.

"Some of them, yes, most viewed me with suspicion, because I was the only asari, some took the time to know me" She explained. "They were a big help, on deciphering the clues of the protheans" She shook her head. "They didn't deserve this…"

"What did you find out?"

"It took the reapers centuries to wipe out the protheans; the few survivors searched for a way, and found it, but…"

"They ran out of time…." Kaiden said.

"Plus, they simply did not have enough resources to go around…it was a slow death…" Liara said getting to the terminal. She pressed a few buttons, and the alarm shut off, the machines started to hum as the pressurized air began to fill the room, all hatches that were open were now closed. "Okay, we can breathe now…" They took off their masks.

"Can we access the labs?" Shepherd asked. Liara nodded. "Then get to work" Kaiden spoke up.

"Guys, it's that woman, again" he said. Shepherd press the button and the recording started. It show an image of two guards working at their stations.

"_Security station…come in. Nothing…" one of the guards said. "Our security protocols kicked in, but nothing..."_

"_Keep trying, must be a glitch or something" Dr. Eva came in. "Oh doctor, I'll get you a report as…" A gunshot rang, and two of the guards were dead. She went on to the terminal. _

"Looks like we found our mole…" Shepherd said. They looked at the other screen, the people in the room they were in, dropped like flies as the air in the room was sucked out of the room.

Liara sighed and walked over to the terminal to the right. She leaned on to the table. "I should have noticed something was off about her, but I was so focused on the reapers…."

"Stopping the reapers are the only we focused on, it's not your fault" Shepherd said.

Liara lowered her head. "What if we're wrong and there's really no way to stop them?" She asked. "What if…"

Shepherd scoffed. "What if….if we worried about the 'what if's' all the time, the reapers would have beaten us a long time ago" he said. "Come on Liara, you're stronger than this…"

Liara turned around. "You're right, I shouldn't think this way…" Liara said. "I don't know how you do it…"

"Everything I care about is at stake, my friends, family, Tali" he said. "I can't afford any doubts, or I lose everything…"

"That's a terrible burden…." Liara said sadly.

"It is, but life wouldn't be worth living if we didn't have something we value worth fighting for" Shepherd said. "We'll stop them, together"

"Right" Liara said. She keyed a few buttons. "Okay, door's open…"

The team went to the tram station, along the way they were met with heavy resistance. The area they were fighting in was too narrow to maneuver, as the troopers kept on throwing their grenades to flush the team out of cover. While the troopers kept the team in cover, two guardians with heavy shields came forward to flank them.

"Shit, we're pinned down!" Kaiden said. Shepherd looked around.

"Kaiden, cryo canister to that guy's right!" He nodded and overloaded the canister and froze the troopers. Shepherd got out of cover and launched an incineration blast shattering them. Liara used her singularity field to separate the guardian's from their shields while Kaiden blew them away with a warp field. Two more troops remained and tried to retreat before Shepherd gunned them down with his Vindicator. When it was all cleared, they got to the tram controls only to be met with a huge gun in the teams faces. "Oh…shit!"

The gun fired causing the team to scatter to cover. "I take it that's the only way in?" Kaiden asked.

"It's the only way I know of…" Liara said.

Shepherd sighed. "Perfect…" he said. "All right, skirt around, but keep out of its sights"

"I'll move up first" Kaiden said moving to the corner. Then Liara moved next and then Shepherd moved last. They kept moving until they reached the door to the side, luckily the gun could follow only so far. They were then met with more troopers in the control room. Shepherd got out his heavy weapon and fired; while they were stunned Kaiden lit them up with his reave. However before he could finish them off, a smoke grenade was thrown obscuring the major's vision. Shot were fired out of the smoke, and Kaiden was hit, luckily it was only his shields that absorbed the impact. Liara took his place fired a singularity to cause the troopers to float; using the light of the singularity to guide him he fired the warp field to cause a biotic explosion. When the smoke was cleared, Kaiden gunned them down when they were down. After the battle was done, Liara got to the terminal.

"Another recording" she said. It showed Dr. Eva with a centurion and a trooper.

"_Set up a perimeter, no one else comes across" Eva said._

"_We still have teams on the other side…"_

"_Do me a favor and don't think it doesn't suit you" she said. "No one is come across and shut down those cameras!" She shot the camera._

Liara sighed. "They got to the Archives"

"And I doubt they'll send us a tram, can you override it?" Kaiden asked.

The asari shook her head. "No, it's on a separate network, we're locked out"

"Then we'll improvise…" Kaiden said walking to the door.

"What are you thinking?" Shepherd asked.

"If we can't get a tram to us, then we'll get them to bring it to us" Kaiden said. "We get one of their communicators and convince them we're on their side and the Alliance soldiers have been taken care of"

Shepherd smirked. "That's so underhanded, I like it, get to work" Kaiden nodded. Liara giggled. "What?"

"Spectre Alenko has become very capable"

"How did….?" Liara just smiled. Shepherd shook his head. "Of course….can you reposition the turret?"

"Yes" Kaiden then called Shepherd, the spectre walked out of the room and met with Kaiden. He was with the Centurion they just killed.

"What's up?"

"He got a transmitter in his helmet, if I can…" He opened the faceplate and jumped back in horror. It reveal a man's face, but his skin was bluish-grey. His eyes glowed a bright blue, and below and above his eyes were lines of blue circuitry. It was reaper tech…Cerberus had reaper tech, but the question was how did the Illusive Man get his hands on it? "My god, he looks like a husk…"

"Yeah, not quite, but close…" Shepherd said sick.

"They would do this to their own people? Sick…" Kaiden said. "It's a good thing we cut our ties to Cerberus when we did…..otherwise…."

"Yeah…." Shepherd picked up the transceiver. "This is Delta Team, anybody there?"

"_Where the hell have you been?"_

"Had to do some clean-up"

"_What's you status?"_

"Waiting for extraction, we're at the tram station" Shepherd said.

"_Roger that, Echo team will ride over and secure the station"_

"Did they buy it?"

Shepherd smirked. "Hook, line and sinker, Liara, are the guns ready?"

Liara came out. "Yes"

"Get to cover; they are going to be in for a surprise" Liara and Kaiden nodded took their places behind the crates below left of the tram. Shepherd took his place to the right of the tram just as the tram made it their location. As they come into the room, the turret, that Liara took control of mowed them down. They tried to get to cover, but Shepherd and Liara used their Singularity to keep them from it. When the soldiers were all dead, they entered the tram.

"Love it when a plan comes together" Shepherd said.

As they went to the other side, the windows rocked loudly as the storm blew in. Shepherd looked out the window; he couldn't even see the mountain anymore. "Storm's getting bad; we need to wrap this up" Kaiden said.

"Luckily, the Archives are on the other side"

"That and a squad of pissed off Cerberus troops, easy" An explosion then rocked the tram, causing the team to fall to the floor. The tram was no longer moving, and another tram with Cerberus troopers were coming towards them.

"Take out that tram!"

"Easy, huh?" Kaiden asked. The team got their weapons out for the ambush.


	5. Chapter 5: Secret of Mars pt3

**Chapter 5: Secret of Mars pt3**

"Here they come!" Kaiden said. The tram full of Cerberus troopers came closer to the team's tram. "Liara, singularity on my mark, go!" Shepherd and Liara used their singularity field, making them float helplessly in the air. Kaiden used his Reave to detonate the two fields, causing the troopers to fall to their deaths. The tram got their position and the team jumped over to the other side, once there a lone trooper was waiting for them. He took out a stun baton and went after the team; Shepherd grabbed his arm and tossed him out of the tram. He nodded to Liara and the asari activated the tram.

"Damn, they really didn't want us getting in here" Kaiden said.

"Yes, it confirms just how valuable this data is to Cerberus" Liara said. Shepherd nodded.

"Then let's hurry" The team took the tram over to the other side, as the window opened, the troopers came out. "Damn they don't waste any time…" The Centurions were up first, and threw a grenade into the tram. The team ran out of the tram before the grenade exploded. Liara used her singularity field, to lift them, while Shepherd used his splitting throw field to take out two enemies at once. Kaiden gunned them down with his assault rifle; he then used his overload to canisters to the troopers left, wiping out the approaching solders. The gate ahead of them opened and two guardians came out along with two Centurions and three troopers. The Centurions threw out smoke grenades while the troopers fired and the guardians continued their approach. The team fell back to get some visibility, Shepherd knocked back the troopers while Kaiden overloaded the Centurions' shields. Liara separated the guardians from their shields and wiped them out with her warp field. The troopers threw a grenade at the asari, the grenade exploded and Liara flew backwards to the ground.

"Liara!" Shepherd said. He then heard beeping coming from under him, another grenade, and the spectre rolled out the way just as the grenade exploded. Kaiden uses his reave to mark the troopers, Shepherd throw his lift grenade causing them fly. The Centurions were left, and they were aiming for the downed asari, before they could do anything Shepherd took control of both Centurions and forced them to gun each other down. After all the soldiers were dead, they went to Liara. The asari opened her eyes, and when she got up, grabbed her arm in pain. Although she escaped the full brunt of the explosion, she still got hit. Kaiden patched her up.

"Sorry, you two, I got careless" Liara said.

"Don't worry about it…we're just glad you're okay" When Liara was back on her feet, they went inside the Archives. They went on guard ready for anything, however when they got inside it was empty.

"All those Cerberus troops, and yet not one person in here" Kaiden said.

Shepherd frowned. "Yeah, I don't like it, it's too easy…" he said. "Kaiden, spread out, find anything that's unusual"

"Got it" Kaiden said walking away.

"Liara, you're with me" Liara nodded and they walked over to the main terminal and worked on the terminal. As the asari worked to get the data, the hologram behind them changed and a voice spoke up.

"Shepherd…" Liara and Shepherd raised their weapons and saw a hologram of the Illusive Man.

"Illusive Man…" Liara said dripping with venom.

"Ah, Dr. T'Soni, why am I not surprised you are here?" he asked

"I haven't forgotten, what you've done, you bastard…"

"It was nothing personal, doctor, I simply couldn't have you in my way" Shepherd looked at Liara; he hadn't seen that look on her face since she declared death on the old Shadow Broker. Something must have happened between them when he was on Earth.

"What's he talking about?"

"Cerberus found my ship on Hagalaz and ambushed me; I barely escaped with my life" she said. "Once I escaped, I went back to Mars to help with the prothean artifact, until they attacked again"

"Yes the Protheans, a fascinating race, they left us these gifts for us to use and the Alliance squandered it" Illusive Man said. "We had the Archives for thirty years, and yet we've done nothing with it"

"What the hell you want?" Shepherd asked. Illusive Man stared at the archives.

"What I always wanted…The data here holds the key to solving the reaper threat"

Shepherd scoffed. "So power, typical, that what led you to turn your own people into monsters?"

"Monsters? Hardly, they've been improved" he said calmly.

"Bullshit! They're one step away from being mindless husks" he growled.

Illusive man sighed. "You've always been shortsighted, Shepherd, destroying the reaper base proved that" he said. "But, you see where you see a way to destroy, I see a way to control them, to dominate and harness their power"

"Imagine how strong humanity would be if we controlled them"

"Yeah, humanity on top of the fucking galaxy, with you as king, I see a year haven't made you any less delusional" Shepherd growled.

"I don't expect you to understand and I'm not looking for you approval" Illusive Man said. "You were a tool, nothing more and nothing less, although successful, but like the rest of the relics in this place, you are obsolete"

"Enough talk, Liara" The asari nodded and went back to work on the data.

"Despite our differences, you were quite useful as an asset, so I will say this as a gesture of respect, don't get my way; this is your only warning, Shepherd" he said coldly.

"Fuck you!"

"Shepherd!" Liara said alarmed.

"What is it?" he asked.

"The data, it's not here" she said. "It's being eased" Shepherd glared back at Illusive Man.

"You!"

"Good bye, Shepherd…" The Illusive Man said as his image vanished.

"How is he doing it?" Shepherd asked.

"It's local, someone is uploading the information" Liara said.

Kaiden went around the perimeter and saw a woman in one of the terminals. "Hey! Step away from the console!" The woman stopped and turned her head, "Turn around, slowly…" he said. As he came close, the woman grabbed the spectre's gun and gave a swift kick to his stomach. The woman then tore through the terminal, closing the Archives and ran away. Kaiden got off the floor.

"Wayne, a woman got the data, it's Eva" He said on the com. Shepherd and Liara got in front to intercept Eva but the woman jumped and flipped over them.

"Damn, she's faster than she looks" Liara said.

"After her!" The team gave chase, the woman was fast, like inhumanly fast the team could barely keep up with her. Eva went to a room in the middle of the room just before the archives, they thought she trapped herself but it was a fake out. When Shepherd opened the door, Eva launched a incineration at Shepherd, it didn't hurt the spectre much but it had enough power to make him flinch. She jumped out of the window and went to their left, the team fired everything they had to knock her out but the woman didn't even flinch much less slow down. They made it outside as Eva jumped and flipped over obstacles with ease gaining some ground while the team struggling to avoid them. When they started to catch up, a shuttle full of Cerberus troops flew beside them. "Shit just we needed!" They started to fire, slowing them down while Eva was getting away. "Damn it, we don't have time for this!"

"Wayne, get Eva, we'll handle these guys!" Kaiden said. Shepherd nodded and ran after her. He raised his com.

"Vega? You read me?" he asked. "Cerberus has the data" All he could hear was static. "Damn it! Radio the Normandy, get them down here!" He continued to run after Eva into a corridor, Shepherd ran towards the middle and was about to catch when she fired off another incineration blast. This time the specte dodged, but the blast curved and hit the boxes beside him causing it to almost fall on him. He growled and ran after her to a ladder, the woman jumped straight up while Shepherd had to climb the ladder. Once on top he saw a Cerberus shuttle fly beside the woman, if she ran away with that data, it was all over…Shepherd ran towards her, but it was too late. Eva jumped into the shuttle and the shuttle flew away.

"Fuck! She getting away!" he said. "Vega? Normandy? Anybody?" As the shuttle was flying away, the radio came in. It was James.

"I got this, Loco!" James slammed the shuttle into Eva's and the two crashed on the ground, almost crashing into Shepherd. Kaiden and Liara caught up to see the whole thing. Shepherd came to the cockpit, to check on James.

"Did I get 'em?" He asked dazed.

Shepherd sighed. "Yeah, you got her, crazy son of a bitch…" James snapped out of his dazed.

"Ah, Normandy's en route, they'll be here soon" he said. He then took a look back at the shuttle, rubbed his neck. "Esteban's going to be pissed" Shepherd shook his head.

"Kaiden!" Liara said alarmed. Shepherd and James snapped to attention and got to Liara, their eyes went wide as they saw Eva, who was not only alive, but was a robot. She had Kaiden by the neck.

"Let him go!" Shepherd growled raising his weapon. Eva just ignored him, and opened her com.

"Your orders…?"

"_Finish him…" _Eva was about to slam Kaiden against the hull, but was shot in the stomach by the spectre, Kaiden continued to shoot the robot until she let go of him. However it was not over, Eva then tried punch Kaiden, but was violently pushed away by Shepherd's biotics. He ran to his friend's side.

"You alright?" Shepherd asked concerned.

Kaiden coughed. "Yeah, don't worry about me" Liara and James spoke up.

"Loco!"

"Kaiden!"

The two spectres looked to their side and saw Eva running towards them; Shepherd and Kaiden raised their guns and fired, stopping the robot. Liara and James ran to them.

"You two alright?"

"Yeah, James, grab that thing" Shepherd said. "Kaiden, can you stand?" Kaiden nodded. His com opened.

"Shepherd, we got reapers inbound, you need to wrap it up quick" Joker said. The Normandy appeared and the team got onboard. The Normandy flew away, just as the reapers appeared near the planet.

_**The Normandy**_

Back on the Normandy, the ship was on route to the Citadel Dr, Chakwas treated Liara and Kaiden for injuries while James placed the mech in the AI room under an energy field just in case it turned itself back on, they could never be too careful with Cerberus' toys. Moments later Tali and Lia ran to their boyfriends, worried about them, James smiled and gave Lia a huge hug.

"Keelah, are you alright, Wayne?" Tali asked.

Shepherd kissed her. "I'm fine, rookie" he said. "Can you and Lia check on that thing for data? I need to speak to Hackett"

"Yes if EDI helps" Lia said.

"Of course" she said. He made his way to the war room. An image of Admiral Hackett appeared.

"Did you get to the Archives?" Hackett asked.

"Yeah, so did Cerberus"

The admiral sighed. "I thought so, did you get the data?"

"Most of it, he downloaded some before I could stop him, it's being analyzed now"

"And what have you learned?"

"It's a blueprint to complete the device" Liara said coming in.

"Ah, Dr. T'Soni glad you're alright, so it a weapon" Hackett said.

"Yes, a weapon of great destruction, it would need a great power source to operate" she said.

"And that is?"

"We're still decrypting the data on what it is"

"Send us the data, and we'll do our own analysis, if Liara is right, this can turn the tides in the war" he said. "This is only the beginning, so let's make it count"

The spectre nodded. "We going to Council, with this data, hopefully they'll actually get off of their sorry asses and help for once" Shepherd said.

"Do whatever it takes to get them onboard"

Shepherd gave a sharp solute. "Yes sir!"

"I'll be in touch soon, Hackett out" His image faded. Shepherd walked out the room, tired from today's mission.

"Shepherd, Lia, Tali, and EDI are almost done; we'll have the data, when we reach the Citadel"

Shepherd sighed. "Right…"

"I take it you don't quite believe it" Liara said.

"The reapers tore through Earth like it was nothing; I find it hard to believe one weapon can stop them"

"What are our options? We can't win conventionally" Shepherd pinched the bridge of his nose. "Shepherd, isn't it worth at least trying?"

Shepherd sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. "I'm going to sleep, this whole thing is giving me a headache" he said. "Be ready when we reach the Citadel"

"I'm sure the Council will help us"

"It'll be a hell of a short war if they don't…"


	6. Chapter 6: The Council

**Chapter 6: The Council**

_**The Normandy**_

"Commander, we'll be at the Citadel in two hours" Joker said. "Commander"

Tali was the first one to wake up and hear the PA. She looked over to her left and saw Shepherd sleeping, and shook him. She really wanted to let the spectre rest after the ordeal of Earth and Mars, but they had work to do. "Wayne, it's time to get up" Tali said softly. Shepherd just snorted in his sleep, and turned to his side, Tali sighed getting him out of bed was always a challenge, especially when he was tired. "That bosh'tet…"

She then gave a mischievous smile, and kissed him on his neck. Shepherd woke up and turned with a grin. Tali gave a smile, it was the first time she seen that goofy smile since the war began. Shepherd stretched and groaned as he sat up in the bed. "Is it my birthday already?" He joked. Tali kissed him deeply on the lips.

"You wish…it's time to get up, we're close to the Citadel" she said.

Shepherd sighed. "Oh joy…" He got up and took out his clothes and went to take a shower. While Shepherd was in the shower, Tali fiddled with her omni-tool, she had tried to get in touch with the flotilla for a while, one to get help for the war against the reapers and two it had been a long time since she seen her friends, Shala, and her fat…the quarian shook her head as she thought of her father, out of all the people she didn't want to see it was her father. She still hadn't forgiven him for using her and almost getting her exiled. Her omni-tool buzzed and screen flashed red, its been like that for a while at first it was because Alliance HQ shut down all contact to the outside due to Shepherd's trial but now… Shepherd came out of the bathroom wiping his hair dry, all he was wearing was a black towel around his waist. As he went to get dressed, he saw Tali with a frustrated look on her face, he knew why. "Any luck contacting the Migrant Fleet?"

She lowered her head. "No, and I'm getting worried, what if the reapers got them?" she said worried. Shepherd raised her head.

"Don't give up hope, if your people are resourceful like you, then they'll be fine" Shepherd said. "I promise, as soon as this whole thing with the Council is done, we'll look for the fleet…"

Tali kissed him. "Thank you, but I don't want you to get distracted for my sake…" she said. Shepherd finished getting dressed as Tali continued. "Right now, I'm more worried about Lia; her family is stuck on Terra Nova with the reapers attacking"

"They may be nedas, but they're still my people" Tali said. "When this whole thing is over, I'll ask the board to accept them, they'll be a big help when we colonize a planet"

Shepherd smiled. "Well, looks like I got two reasons to win this war"

_**The Citadel**_

The Normandy came through the relay and docked on the space station. Due Shepherd's spectre clearance, the Normandy was allowed to dock in the same place as the Ambassadors' and the Councilors' private ships. They even had personal shuttle cars to get to where they needed to go faster. The team made it off the Normandy, and into the lobby, security was stricter than ever due to the reapers. It had new scanning gates that was guaranteed to detect weapons and a person that was indoctrinated. Shepherd scoffed at the idea, he's seen indoctrination in action, it wasn't like being caught with metal in your pocket. It was much more subtle and almost impossible detect unless someone saw the signs. As they turned the corner, the team met two familiar faces, Kolyat and Captain Bailey. "Commander Shepherd, you look well" Baliey said.

"Good to see you again, Captain" Shepherd said shaking his hand.

"You too, though, it's Commander now…" Bailey said grimly.

"Congratulations?"

"Yeah don't, I miss the desk back then I could do a lot more" he said. "Now, I have to deal with political bullshit and escorting self-entitled jackasses"

"Ouch" James said.

"Yeah, anyway, the Council is expecting you, but they're dealing with their own…problems…"

"Glad to see some things haven't changed…" Tali said sarcastically.

"Yeah, anyway, they apologize for the inconvenience and blah, blah, blah…Meet them here, at Udina's office. They'll be ready soon enough"

"Thanks" Shepherd said. "Mind if I speak to Kolyat?"

"Sure, just don't be too long, I'm stretched enough as it is" Bailey said. Shepherd nodded.

"I'll head up to Udina's office" Liara said. The asari went to the elevator ahead, Shepherd nodded and looked at the others.

"And you guys?"

"I'll look for some upgrades for the ship" Tali said.

"I'll see if some the refugees need help" Kaiden said.

"I'm just a tourist today" James said. The team gave him a look. "What?"

"I'll make sure he does not cause trouble" Lia joked. James rolled his eyes and wrapped his arm around Lia and left. The rest left leaving Shepherd and Kolyat, the young drell looked different in a C-sec uniform. It wasn't just his looks, it was his demeanor, he was calmer…Bailey's brand of tough love had tamed the rash kid he saw a year ago.

"You look good, kid" Shepherd said.

"Thanks to you and dad" Kolyat said.

Shepherd raised a brow, that was a surprised the last time he was hear he didn't even want to talk to his father. "Dad? I take it you and Thane made up"

"Yeah, dad doesn't have long, and I don't want the last thing for him to see is his own son hating him…" Kolyat said sadly.

"That's very mature of you, kid"

"Thank Bailey, he told me about him and his son and it put things in perspective for me "

"So, where is Thane?" Shepherd asked.

"At Huerta Memorial Hospital" Shepherd looked at him, he remembered why he had to leave the Normandy. He had felt his disease get worse; Thane had Kepral's Syndrome, a condition caused by cumulative long-term exposure to a humid climate. This syndrome erodes the ability of drell lungs to take in oxygen, and eventually spreads out to other organs. It is noncommunicable, and there is currently no known cure, though leading hanar scientific authorities are working on creating a genetic adaptation.

"Is he okay?" he asked concerned,

"He's fine, he's just helping some of the refugees, and I keep telling him to save his strength, but…." Kolyat said. "He keeps on saying, it's a good time to help people"

Shepherd chuckled. "Sounds like him, well it was good seeing you kid" he said. "I think I'll go see him after this whole thing with council is done"

"Thank you, Shepherd, dad would like that" Kolyat said.

_**The Citadel towers**_

After speaking with Kolyat, he made his way over to Udina's office and was met with a asari. "Commander. Councilor Udina is waiting for you" she said. "The council is in session" They their way to the council chambers. Shepherd was in the middle of a typical tit for tat with the council. As he entered the chamber, he could hear Udina trying to plead with the other councilors to get help for Earth, but as usually they wouldn't budge.

"We've got our own problems, Councilor. Earth is not in this alone" Sparatus said.

"But Earth was the first council world hit. By all reports, it faces the brunt of the attack" Udina said trying to stay calm.

"By your reports…" Valern said. "New reaper fronts are opening everywhere" Shepherd caught up with Liara, who was shaking her head, weary of the Council's constant bickering. Shepherd understood, common sense would tell him that this would be the time to stop the arguing and join together, but unfortunately the Council does not work on common sense.

"So how long has this been going on?" Shepherd asked.

Liara sighed. "Since I came in….I truly don't understand how you deal with these people…"

"Lots of practice…" Shepherd said. "The reports are accurate. Earth was attacked by the reapers" The council looked at him, as Shepherd stepped forward. "Usually, I would say 'I told you so', but I think the evidence speaks for itself"

Sparatus frowned. "This is hardly the time for jokes, Shepherd"

Shepherd crossed his arms. "Who said I was joking?" he asked. "We need your help. Everything you can spare"

"Each of us faces a similar situation. Even now, the reapers are pressing on our borders" Tevos said. "If we lend you our strength to help Earth, our own worlds, will fall" Udina looked at them, with an expression of anger and desperation.

"We must fight this enemy together!" Udina said.

"And so we should just follow you to Earth?" Valern asked.

The turian councilor raised his hand, Udina and Valern quieted down. "Even if we were to unite our fleets, do you really think it will be enough?" Sparatus asked.

"I don't expect you to follow me without a plan"

"Councilors…we have a plan, a blueprint. For a device created during their war with the reapers" Liara said.

"A blueprint for what?"

Liara walked forward and opened her omni-tool. A hologram of large object in the Prothean language appeared before her. "We're still piecing it together…but it seems to be a weapon of some sort"

"Capable of destroying the reapers?"

"So it would seem"

"The scale would be colossal…" Valern said.

"I already forwarded the plans to Admiral Hackett, the remnants of the human fleet is building it as we speak" Shepherd said. "We can win this…"

Liara nodded. "Our calculations say that it is very feasible to build" she said. "If we work together…"

"Have you forgotten the reapers wiped out the protheans? What good did this weapon do?" Tevos asked.

"It was incomplete, there was component missing, called the Catalyst" Liara said. "They…ran out of time"

"And you believe it can stop the reapers?"

"We don't have a choice but to believe, we can't win this the regular way" Shepherd said bluntly. "And while I don't agree with Udina most of the time, he's right we need to stand together" The councilors all looked at each other. "They won't stop at Earth; they'll wipe out every organic race in the galaxy if we don't stop them" Sparatus and Tevos looked at Valern, who shook his head, Shepherd sighed he knew what was coming. The spectre had developed a sixth sense for disappointment….

Tevos sighed. "The cruel and unfortunate truth is while the reapers focus on Earth, we can prepare and regroup"

"My people are convening a summit amongst our people. If you can secure our borders, we may consider aiding you" Valern said. Udina palmed his face; apparently he had the same thought as Shepherd. The council walked away.

Liara sighed. "I hope that was an offer of support, I'll dig up what I can about the device" Shepherd nodded, Udina looked at Shepherd.

"Shepherd, meet me in my office" Udina said.

_**Udina's Office**_

Shepherd was waiting in Udina's office, the spectre still hated the councilor's guts but with Udina being Shepherd's lifeline to resources for the war, beggars couldn't be choosers. Udina came in still fuming at the council's decision, he had tried to appeal to the other councilors for at least minimum support, but they were very adamant on this summit. Shepherd watched as the councilor paced back and forth, ranting and raving about how useless the other councilors were and for once Shepherd had to agree.

"Well, that could have gone better…" Shepherd said.

"They're bunch of self-concerned jackasses, Shepherd" Udina said.

"Talk about calling the kettle black…" he muttered. Udina kept on ranting.

"Earth is burning and they're sitting on their asses" he said angrily. A voice spoke up, they looked at the office door in came Councilor Sparatus.

"We're just looking out for our people the best we can, same as you with yours" Sparatus said.

"Councilor…" Udina greeted curtly.

"I can't give what you want, but I can tell you how to get it"

Shepherd crossed his arms. "Meaning?"

"Palaven's Primarch Fedorian was called for the war summit" the councilor explained. "He's your kind of man; he's open to…extreme solutions"

"Nice, but I'm sensing a 'but'…"

"Astute as always, Shepherd, the primarch can't get out of Palaven's system thanks to the reapers" he said. "We don't know if he's alive and the summit can't proceed without him"

"I save the primarch, and then I get my support for Earth?"

"Yes, our intel states that Fedorian is on Menae, Palaven's largest moon" Sparatus said. "Get him out and he'll take care of the rest"

"Got it"

"I know we haven't always gotten along…"

Shepherd snorted. "You mean never…." Sparatus ignored him.

"…but good luck" he said walking away.

"That went well"

"Its start, I'll talk to the others, see if we can support the summit. Move things along" Udina said sitting at his desk. He growled. "You save their lives and for what? To jump through hoops…While we're trying to appease them, eleven billion of our people are dying like dogs"

Shepherd crossed his arms. "So you have a plan?"

"Humanity has created some goodwill, it's time to cash in…" Shepherd snorted, most of that goodwill was due because of the spectre doing the heavy lifting. He shook his head, it was no time for pettiness, he continued to listen to Udina. "I'll get what funding I can, what materials I can, spread the message: help the humans help yourselves"

"Then the small stuff, a draft and order all civilian ships armed. Work on the Prothean device will be around the clock"

Shepherd walked away. "Nice plan, if you can get it done…"

_**Huerta Memorial Hospital**_

Huerta Memorial Hospital, located on the Presidium of the Citadel. The hospital is named after President Christopher Huerta of the United North American States on Earth. Before the reapers it was the most expensive hospital on the Citadel as politicians, celebrities, and CEOs had the money to shell out for their top of the line care.

Now it was a totally different place, as doctors were running around trying to treat the people coming in, people were groaning and moaning in pain from their injuries. Due to the amount of patients coming in, some doctors have resorted to treating people in lobby. From what Kaiden to Shepherd, it was even worse in some of the smaller clinics in the Wards and it had gotten so bad that doctors were making make-shift clinics in the refugee areas for the soldiers coming from the battlefield with the reapers. As long as the war continued, it would only get worse. Shepherd went to meet Thane, per his promise to Kolyat, he was looking out the window, training his body.

"Long time no see, Thane" Shepherd said with a smile.

"Shepherd, when I heard the Earth attack, I tried to call…" he said.

"Don't worry about it" he said. Shepherd and Thane shook hands. "Got to see you're still in shape"

"My disease kills slowly, thankfully healthy living and care delays it for a few years" Thane said. "Of course my time has come and gone, now I do it because it pleases me"

"What are you doing here?"

"I promise your son, to come see you" Shepherd said. "He looks good, you should be proud"

"I am, if I were to die tomorrow, it would be with no regrets" he said. Shepherd smiled sadly. "How is the crew?"

"They're fine, a little shaken by what they have seen on Earth, but fine"

"I miss the old days, if I were only a little better I would join you to fight this evil" Thane said solemnly.

Shepherd put his hand on his shoulder. "Don't worry about; it seems you are doing your fair share of good work yourself"

"I am near the end of my life; it is good to be generous"

"So how long?" He asked sadly.

"I've been to several doctors. My favorite gave three months to live, nine months ago" Thane said. The drell looked out the window with a sigh. "It is freeing to find no requirements placed on me. No responsibilities, no fear, it is a good way to end to a life"

"Are you in a lot of pain?"

"At times…The oxygen transfer proteins do form correctly, your equivalent would be hemoglobin" he explains. "As a result, my blood is low in oxygen, no matter how much I breathe, I get tingling, numbness…and that's the best part"

"What about your brain?"

"I can't track the damage; I just experience dizziness from time to time"

Shepherd lowered his head. "I'm sorry…"

Thane smiled. "Don't be, I was able to redeem myself, I have a son again, thanks to you, I regret nothing" he said. "Just when I go, please take care of my son, you are the only one I trust with him"

Shepherd was touched by this. "Thank you, Thane, and I will…"

Shepherd spent a little more time talking to the former assassin, until it was time to get back to the Normandy. Now he had another reason to win this war.

_**If you are wondering, yes, Kolyat will become a member of the Normandy crew at some part in the story, so stay tuned….**_

_**As always Review and Comment!**_


	7. Chapter 7a: Palaven pt1

**Chapter 7a: Palaven pt1**

"_Hold the line! Don't them through!" Shepherd said firing his gun. He was in the middle of battle, a desperate battle against the husks. The wreck of the Normandy was behind him, the ground team survived, but the crew wasn't so lucky. That was not saying much as the husks ambushed them. The team was decimated; Kaiden, James, Liara Kasumi, and Garrus had died; only leaving Shepherd and Tali._

"_Wayne, Look!" Shepherd's eyes went wide as Harbinger landed; its core started to glow, and it was aiming at Tali. Shepherd tried to run to her, but as hard as he tried, Tali went farther and farther away from him. Harbinger fired and Tali's scream filled the air, Shepherd rushed to Tali's side, she was bleeding everywhere, her suit was shredded and face plate was broken, she was dying. "Tali, Tali please don't do this to me "he said tears. "Please, don't leave me" _

"_Wayne, I love…" Her eyes closed as she went limp in Shepherd's arms. The husks closed in, while the one in front started to glow orange. A booming sneering voice entered his mind._

"_YOU HAVE FAILED, SHEPHERD"_

"_No…" he said cradling Tali's dead body._

"_THEY ALL LOOKED UP TO YOU, SHE LOVED YOU, AND YOU FAILED THEM!"_

"_No!" The sky grew red, as the screams of the innocents filled the night air. The reapers descended from the air and destroyed planet after planet. Innocent fled trying to escape the carnage, but they disappeared and husks replaced them. Tali's dead body dissolved into blue cybernetics, her once beautiful white eyes were replaced by the soulless blue eyes of a husk. Tali grasped his throat tightly as the rest of her helmet shattered to reveal her face twisted and deformed by reaper tech. _

_Harbinger's voice echoed as the reapers one red-eye gazed at him. "YOU HAVE FAILED THEM ALL, YOU DESERVE TO SUFFER!"_

"_NO!" Husk-Tali raised her now clawed arm into the air…it would be the last thing he would ever see….._

_**The Normandy**_

"NO!" Shepherd said as he shot up. His breathing was heavy, his body was covered in sweat. He looked to his left and saw Tali sleeping peacefully, she was alive, his love was alive. Shepherd got out of bed and went to the bathroom to wash his face off; he looked in the mirror to see the bags under his eyes and the blood-shot eyes. Sleeping hadn't been too good for the spectre since the war started and when he did get some sleep he would have nightmares like the one he just had.

He sighed, it was just a nightmare, but it felt so real…people sometimes say that dreams are a sign to what's to come. Shepherd in the past would have written it off as nonsensical drivel, but now it maybe something to that nonsense after it was dreams that led him to stop Saren. If his nightmare was a sign of what's to come, he would prevent it even it cost him his life. As he went to bed, he saw Tali in the doorway; he must have made more noise than he thought….

"Wayne, are you alright?" She asked. Shepherd kissed her on the forehead.

"I'm fine, rookie…" Tali looked at him, not really convinced. Shepherd gave a small smile to reassure her. "I promise…" Shepherd walked past her and to his drawer for clothes, he could forget finishing up that sleep. The com opened.

"Commander, Admiral Hackett, wants to speak with you"

"Right…" Shepherd finished getting dressed and went to the elevator where Tali grabbed his arm. The spectre looked back. "Rookie…?"

"Wayne, do you trust me?" she asked softly.

Shepherd was taken aback at the question. "Of course I do, I never want you to think I don't trust you"

"Wayne, I hope you know you can tell me anything, right?"Tali asked. She lowered her head. "I just don't want to lose you to this damn war…" Shepherd raised her head, and looked into her eyes.

"And you won't, promise…" Tali hugged him tightly.

"I won't lose you either…" he said softly.

_**The War Room**_

Shepherd went into the War Room and pressed the communicator's button, Admiral Hackett appeared. Even though it was a hologram, he could tell the old admiral wasn't getting in sleep either, nice to know they were all in the same boat. "Commander, Udina kept me updated on your meeting with the Council, looks like they're running scared"

Shepherd snorted and crossed his arms. If there was one thing he could count on, it was the Council nutting up in the face of a crisis, how the Council survived this long with such asinine leaders he will never know. "More like arguing on which part of the galaxy to save, they're even useless when we don't need them to be"

The Admiral sighed. "True, but the fact of the matter is we do need them, so what is the plan?" Hackett asked.

"I'm going Palaven to rescue the primarch, he's needed for the summit with asari and the salarians" Shepherd said. "If all goes well, I'll be able to bypass the council and appeal to their leadership directly"

Hackett nodded. "I like it; we can start the ground work for our counter attack"

"Unfortunately, we don't have a lot to back it up, too many unknowns to consider"

"Then gather as many alliances as you can…" Shepherd nodded, it sounded easy enough, he was sure there some people he hadn't pissed off yet that could be swayed to his side. Plus there were plenty of people who owed him a few favors for helping them out with their problems, as soon they finished saving this primarch he was going to cash a few of his good wills provided that the reapers hadn't killed them off yet.

"And the prothean device….?"

"Get me people who can build it, and if you can't, I'll take ships, soldiers, supplies…anything"

"And when it's finished?"

"Then we pool our resource for the final battle, until then we need to keep hitting in every theater of war" Hackett said. "I'll be expecting regular updates"

"Sir, if you can, could you try to locate the Migrant Fleet, they'll be a huge help in the war and plus this is personal for me"

"Of course, I'll let you know if I find anything on the fleet" he said. "Good luck Shepherd"

_Palaven's largest moon has been shrouded in secrecy since the dawn of the turian space age. During the Krogan Rebellions, the Hierarchy classified nearly all data on Menae, and its sister moon Nanus, because they feared the krogan could use the moons as weapons by smashing them into Palaven's surface. However, some information has leaked out. Images of turian bases where personnel walk without enviro-suits indicate advanced infrastructure-likely a network of subterranean tunnels with powerful mass effect field generators that retain heat and atmosphere over swaths of the surface._

_The Reapers' plans for bombarding the bases were met with fierce resistance by the turian fleet and the moon's anti-aerospace defenses. With their easy victory stalled, the Reapers deployed a variety of ground units to take the bases one at a time._

_The turians are the superior force, but the Reapers have the patience to slowly grind them down. With every base captured, the Reapers deny the turian fleet another place to repair or refuel.-Codex_

The turian was in the middle of a bloody battle with the reapers, and the reapers were winning. The fire of their cruisers and dreadnoughts did nothing to stop the onslaught of the machines as they shredded the ships, like a hot knife through butter. While the turian army was keeping the reapers busy, the Normandy could slip by undetected to Menae, Palaven's moon. The Normandy released the Kodiak and went dark until Shepherd contacted them with the Primarch in tow. While the team waiting to land on the surface, Tali looked at the image of Palaven burning.

"Oh Keelah, Palaven!" Tali gasped.

"I always wanted to visit the Turian homeworld, but not like this…" Kasumi said. What's more their old friend, Garrus was likely on the planet fighting with his people. Although Garrus was a very capable soldier, they still worried if he was safe, especially Liara. The asari was on pins and needles as she heard the information about Palaven, worrying if her boyfriend was safe, since them Liara buried herself in her Shadow Broker work to keep her mind of Palaven. The image then shifted to a reaper shredding a turian dreadnought to pieces with its weapon. The other dreadnoughts opened fired, with assistance from their fighters and crusiers, but their weapons had no effect on the reapers just swatted them away like they were annoying pests.

Shepherd shook his head. "Strongest military in the galaxy and the reapers are taking them down like they were nothing…." He said. "Just like Earth…" Tali gripped his hand.

"We'll get Earth back, cuz…" Kasumi said.

Shepherd sighed. "I hope so…" Cortez spoke up.

"Commander! The LZ is getting swarmed" he said. "Bringing up the guns now"

"Kasumi, open the hatch" The shuttle's turret came into position as the thief opened the hatch. As the Kodiak came along the side of the ridge, they saw the husks climbing um the side as the turians fired on the ones top-side. Shepherd fired the guns, and the husks fell as they were shredded apart in bloody chunks. The shuttle landed to the side of the turian's cover.

"Okay, we get in and we get out" When the team came out of the shuttle, the Husks came swarming at them. "Kasumi, submission net, slow them down" Kasumi nodded and opened her omni-tool, it was a new program she ordered from the black market on Earth, they prided themselves on having rare items. The submission net was one of them; it was mostly used by the batarians to 'discipline' their slaves. Kasumi fires an electrified net entangled on of the husk, while it was immobilized it shot out electricity and shocked husks passing it and stunned them. While they were stunned Tali and Shepherd came in and blasted them with shotgun blasts. After a few more waves, eventually the husks stopped coming. He approached the turians.

"You guys all right?" Shepherd asked.

"Yes sir!" the turians said saluting,

"Where is your commanding officer?"

"Straight ahead and around the corner, past the first barricade" The team nodded made their way to the camp. In the distance, they could see a reaper, seeing from a distance was one thing but seeing up close was something else. To that reaper they were simply insignificant, it didn't care about a person's life no more than Shepherd cared about the life of a fly or an ant. After all why would they care about something they could easily crush underneath their feet? Shepherd always said that he was going to defeat the reapers, but now seeing what they could do…it was humbling…

"They should have listened to you…" Tali said.

"I know, but there's no point of worrying about it now, let's go" he said solemnly. They made it the base, to meet the leader. Once inside, their first sight was rows of turians bodies covered up in tarps, men and women who died fighting to keep their people safe. Shepherd hoped that Garrus wasn't one of them, they approached a make shift command center with a turian in red and black armor, he was speaking with his men. A female turian in white and black armor and a male turian in yellow and black armor were standing at attention waiting for orders.

"Tobesik, get your men to the north barricade" he said. "Reinforce the 6th and 8th divisions"

Tobesik saluted. "Sir!"

"Sergeant Bartus, get that com tower operational"

Bartus saluted. "Yes, sir!" The turian went back to the terminal, as Shepherd and team approached them.

"Commander, I heard you were coming, General Corinthus"

"We're here for primarch Fedorian" Corinthus stopped typing and looked at Shepherd.

He frowned. "I'm afraid, that won't be happening…"

"Why not?" Tali asked.

"Primarch Fedorian is…dead, his shuttle was shot down an hour ago, as it tried to leave"

"That's going to be a problem…" Kasumi said.

"How bad is it?" Shepherd asked.

Corinthus sighed. "The enemy is unlike anything we faced before, four hundred dead in half an hour, not even the krogan was this brutal" he said. "We set up camps on this moon as an advance position, to flank the enemy, it would be a sound strategy, but..."

"Irrelevent…." The spectre said grimly.

"I'm afraid so, with the reapers' sheer force, such tactics are useless, the primarch found out the hard way"

"I'm sorry; I heard he was a good man"

"And a friend…he would have been an outstanding diplomat…"

"So what happens now? We don't have a primarch" Tali said.

"Then we find his successor, and hope he didn't share Fedorian's fate" The com came in. "This is Corinthus, what is it?'

"T…This is Bartus….we're surrounded by husk at the com tower…all of my men are dead" he said. "Need reinforcements….Need…." The com shut off abruptly, Cotinthus growled in frustration, the reapers was just pinning them down.

"Damn it, without that com tower, everyone's isolated" he said. "Shepherd, if you can help us, then I'll find the successor, Palaven command would know, but the com tower is out"

Shepherd nodded. "Got it, we'll get this done in no time" The team exited the camp and headed for the com tower, as they got closer they saw the bodies of Bartus and his men. Shepherd sighed. "They never stood a chance…" They then heard the growls and howls of husks, up ahead they saw husks ran towards them. Shepherd and Tali went in guns blazing blasting them with their shotguns; Kasumi disappeared giving them support by stunning them with her nets and disorienting them with her flash bangs. When the battle was done, they went to the tower. The control panel was a sparking mess, wires were exposed, and the display was fading in and out.

"Damn it, it's damaged, we need someone to fix it"

"I can fix it no problem, just keep the husks off me" Tali said. Shepherd and Kasumi nodded. They then heard the growling of husks.

"Wayne, here they come" Kasumi said.

"Ready, cuz?"

Kasumi smirked. "Just try to stop me" They rushed into battle, as the husks swarmed the battlefield.


	8. Chapter 7b: Palaven pt2

**Chapter 7b: Palaven pt2**

The husks were surrounding the cousins; they were quickly losing ground from the mindless horde. Kasumi used her submission nets to slow them down, while Shepherd used his stasis field to freeze the husks in place, he then used his warp field to detonate the field wiping out groups of the reaper slave. However victory was short-lived as more came to replace the fallen.

"Shit, rookie, we need you!" Shepherd said.

"Almost there!" Tali said frantically working on the tower. They heard growls from behind; the reapers were dropping in husks behind them. Shepherd activated his tech for extra protection. Kasumi used her overload to cripple a group of husks, she then disappeared and gunned them all down with her Locus. Husks surrounds Shepherd, one of them latched on to the spectre and started to beating on him before he overpowered it and smashed it under his boot. Another husk struck the spectre from behind, causing him stagger letting the other husks attack him. Kasumi seeing Shepherd in trouble got out her flashbangs and disoriented them. Shepherd detonated her tech armor and pushed the husks back. Meanwhile Tali was frantically doing the last repairs for the com tower, when the user interface went green, she got out her shotgun. "Got it!"

"Good, now get your ass down here!" Kasumi said shooting more of the husks. Tali went down the a ladder and joined Kasumi and Shepherd just as the reapers dropped down more husks. Tali summoned her drones and started blasting the husks when they got close; Chatikka let out a stream of flames and burned a row of husks before the gotten on the ridge. Her defense drone attacked any husks that dare to get close to the quarian with shocks that stunned them allowing Tali finish them off with her geth shotgun. However that wasn't enough to stem the tides, as news husks came in replacing the ones that had fallen.

"Shit, there's too many of them…" The team kept fighting, but they were almost running out of ammo and they were getting exhausted, husks may not have been the toughest enemies but they knew how to whittle down a person's stamina. Just as things seemed bleak, the husks started to be mowed down by an unknown attacker; the team looked behind them and saw turian reinforcements coming over the ridge. Corinthus must have seen the com tower back online and sent more men to guard the area, whatever the case the team was glad for the reinforcements. With the turian soldiers joining them the battle became much easier. As the last husk fall, Shepherd's com opens.

"Shepherd come back to base, I've found your man" Corinthus said.

"Understood, by the way thanks for the assistance" Shepherd said.

"No problem"

Shepherd looked to his team "Let's go" The team went back to the turian camp, to meet with the general. "What'cha you got?"

"Succession is usually straight forward, but with so many dead or MIA, so there is a lot of jumping around"

"I need someone, I don't care who" Someone spoke up.

"On it, we'll find you the primarch" A turian in blue and silver armor with familiar blue markings came to them. It was none other than Shepherd's old friend Garrus Valkarian, cocky smirk and everything.

Shepherd smirked, happy to see his friend well. "Garrus!" Corinthus faced him and saluted him. Garrus didn't have any particular rank, so to see a General salute him like he was a higher rank was a surprise. Shepherd could tell Garrus wasn't exactly comfortable with this new-found authority, which meant this was a recent thing.

"Valkarian, sir, I didn't see you arrive…"

Garrus held up his hand. "At ease General" Garrus shook Shepherd's hand.

"Good to see you Garrus, looking well I see"

Garrus smirked. "I told you, I would be ready" he looked at Kasumi and Tali. "Good to see you two"

"You too, Gary, so 'sir', huh? Since when are you a sir?" Kasumi asked jokingly.

The turian cleared his throat. "It's a formality, nothing more"

"I wouldn't be surprised if you were the new primarch" Tali said.

Garrus groaned. "Please, don't even joke about that, I had enough headaches dealing with C-sec"

"So what are you doing? I thought you'd be on Palaven"

"If we lose this moon, then we lose Palaven, I was the closest thing to an expert on reaper forces, so I'm …advising" Garrus said. "Corinthus filled me in; we know who you're after"

"Palaven Command tells me the next Primarch is General Adrien Victus" Corinthus said. "Risky choice"

"How so?" Kasumi asked

"Don't get me wrong, he has a good record, lifelong military, gets results, and popular with his troops" he explained. "A military genius, but has a reputation of playing fast and loose with accepted strategy, which is why he was so low on the succession list"

"What do you mean?" Shepherd asked.

Garrus spoke up. "On Taetrus, during the uprising, his squad discovers a salarian spy ring, at the same time as the turian separatists did" he explained. "Instead of eliminating the ring, he fell back. Even gave up valuable fortification to the rebels"

"Then the rebels attacked the salarians, and when both groups had worn each other down, Victus moved back in and took them down, didn't lose a man" he said. "Cemented him as a legend among the grunts"

"Bold strategy, but he didn't exactly become popular with military command" Corinthus said dryly.

"Heh, Primarch Victus, should be something to see" Garrus said amused. "I know where he is, too, I was just fighting with him this morning"

"Can we trust him?" Tali asked.

"Definitely, conventional warfare is just not going to work, we need someone who can think outside of that, he's our man"

"Alright then, let's get to the shuttle and get him" Shepherd com opened.

"Commander! Shepherd, come in!" Joker said.

"Can this wait Joker? We're in the middle of a warzone"

"We got a situation on the Normandy, it's like she's possessed …shutting down systems and powering up systems" he said. "I can't find the source, nether can the engineers"

"I need the Normandy standing by; we may need to bug out"

"I'll go and deal with the problem, but that means I have to take the shuttle" Tali said.

"We can walk, luckily I know the way" Garrus said.

Tali nodded. "Take care of yourselves"

"You too, rookie" Shepherd said as Tali walked back to the shuttle. "Garrus, you said you were with Victus?"

"Yeah, but we got separated, he went to bolster a breaking flank. He could be anywhere"

"We're trying to raise him, Commander" His com open.

"General, you have a harvester incoming to your location" There was a large roar coming towards them, a giant flying creature with a long neck was seen flyover them to the north. He remembered the Harvesters from Grunt's rite a year ago, but this looked a lot different from the ones on Tuchanka. Shepherd frowned, the reapers had been busy these last couple of months.

"Damn it, we don't need this now, the main barricade is close to breaking" Corinthus said. "Commander, we need you at the barricade"

"What about the Harvester?" Kasumi asked.

"Wait, before I came here, I brought some people with me, they can help you with the Harvester" Garrus said. "Sidonis, do you read me?"

"Here Garrus"

"Harvester, inbound to the air field, get there and support the general's men"

"Understood"

Shepherd looked at him surprised, the last time he heard that name, Garrus want to kill him because he betrayed their group on Omega. They were able to track him down at the Citadel by persuading Harkin aka 'Fade' to help locate him. At the last minute, Shepherd was able to talk down Garrus from killing Sidonis when he found out he was guilty about causing his teammates death. Soon afterwards, he turned himself in to C-sec to make amends. "Sidonis? I thought he was locked up on the Citadel" Shepherd said amazed.

"He was, but he got released for good behavior, he then came to find me as I was leaving for Palaven, said he wanted to redeem himself"

"So let you him"

"You gave an ex-con, an assassin, two Cerberus operatives, and a geth a chance, I figured I could give him a chance, well a second chance" Garrus said. "Now let's get to that barricade" The team got to the barricade, where there was turret at the top, Shepherd got in as the husks started to drop in. The husks came at them; one was taken down by Kasumi's Locust, and Garrus' Viper. Shepherd started the turret and tore through the husks approaching. More started to come this time closer to the ledge, the husks started to climb up to barricade

"No you don't!" Kasumi threw a flash bang at the husk, disorienting it before gunning it down with SMG. Garrus knocked the husks off the ledge with concussive shot, when some of the husks got closer to the barricade; they triggered several proxy mines that Garrus had littered outside the barricade. Shepherd continued to fire on the husks, however there were simply too many to keep them at bay. Kasumi trapped one of the husks in a submission net; the electric current flowed through its allies as Kasumi gunned them down. "Is anyone getting bored with these guys?"

"Kinda" Garrus said. "I hate to say it, but I think Sidonis might be having more fun with the Harvester"

"You would think they would send something tougher than husks for this side" She said.

"Give it a minute, the reapers have yet to disappoint us" After the fifth wave, something else dropped something big. Its body was bluish grey and bulky like a krogan but it was mutated to bigger, its head was distinctly turian with large tubes replacing its neck.

"What the hell is that?" the large behemoth charged at the barricade. "Brace yourself!" It hit the barricade, making the team fall off the barricade and on to the ground. It then charged again while the team was down, they rolled out the way where the giant husk cleaved through a large rock formation behind them. The team kept its distance, firing at the brute however the bullets were bouncing off of it. It was incredibly well armored; they then heard sounds of growls, behind them were a pack of husks. The team went back to back as they closed in.

"So still bored with the husks, Kasumi?" Shepherd asked.

"I take it back; regular husks were good before…" The husks were the first one to attack, they charged the team with reckless abandon before Kasumi knocked them down with her flashbangs. "I'll try and get the husks off of you" Kasumi said attacking the husks.

Which left the brute for Shepherd and Garrus to handle. "Garrus, you get the left and I'll get the right" Shepherd said. The brute charge and Shepherd ducked out of the way, he then threw a warp field. Garrus fired his assault rifle to its attention. The brute then swatted at Shepherd and thrown him back against the wall hard.

"Boss!" The brute then charged at the spectre, Shepherd barely dodged the charge and countered with an incineration blast. Garrus came to his side. "You alright?"

"Damn this guy is tough, what I wouldn't give for a heavy weapon…" Shepherd said. "Watch out!" The brute came in charging again, Shepherd and Garrus rolled out the way and hit it with a volley of warp field and concussive shots, they were all shook off like they were nothing. A blue electrified net enveloped the giant; however it just slowed it down not stopped. From the side, Kasumi was shooting the brute with her pisol, Shepherd and Garrus joined in with their combo of powers and guns. It took a while, but eventually the brute fell, much to the relief of the now exhausted team. Garrus' com opened.

"Go ahead, Sidonis…"

"The Harvester has been dealt with, what are your orders?"

"Stay with Corinthus, they may come back" Garrus said.

"Got it, also, the general wanted to speak with Shepherd" Sidonis said. Garrus operated his omni-tool.

"Go ahead"

"Shepherd, I still can't get a stable comm link, but from what it a sound like it's a mess" Corinthus said. "You better hurry"

"On it, let's go" Shepherd said. "Garrus bring me to the last place you saw Victus" Garrus nodded and the team made their way to the location.

"How far is it?" Kasumi asked.

"Should be pretty quick, unless we find trouble" Garrus said. "So tell me Shepherd, is Li…?"

"She's fine, back on the Normandy"

Garrus gave a breath of relief. "I'm glad, when I didn't hear from Liara, I got worried"

"She misses you, Garrus"

"I know, spirits know I miss her too, things have been… hectic" Garrus said. "Take a look at that blaze of orange on Palaven, the big one, that's my hometown" Kasumi and Shepherd looked up.

"I'm so sorry, Gary" She said sadly.

Garrus sighed. "Three million lost on the first day, five on the second" he said. "What makes it worse? My dad and sister was there when the reapers hit, I haven't been able to contact them"

"I'm sure they made it out…" she said.

"I hope so…"

"How your military?" Shepherd asked.

"Look around, we're holding our own, but eventually it will be a waiting game for the reapers for us to tire ourselves out" Garrus said grimly. "Damn it, if only they had listened to your warnings about the reapers, we might have been ready"

"I doubt anyone could be ready for this…" Kasumi said. They then heard the growling of Husks, behind and in front of them.

"Shit…" The team got their weapons out. "We may be a little late"


	9. Chapter 7c: Palaven pt3

**Chapter 7c: Palaven pt.3**

The screeches and growls of the husks filled the air, as the creatures climbed on top of the ridge. The team opened fired on the husks before they could get up and attack, those that could get up charged the team with reckless abandon. The team backed up giving themselves room to maneuver, however they then heard growls from behind them. Garrus turned around shot at the husks with his Phaeston while Shepherd and Kasumi dealt with the remaining husks in the front. Kasumi stunned three husks with an overload and Shepherd gunned them down with his Locust. Once the path was cleared, and they made their way to Victus' last location.

Kasumi shuddered. "God, I hate those things….to think they're all over Japan" she said.

"Get used to it…'cause it's going to be bad all over" Garrus said.

"She knows… leaving Earth was hard, for all of us" Shepherd said.

"So how important is this summit?"Garrus asked.

"Important, no one is beating the reapers alone" The team came into a turian camp and met with some injured soldiers. Shepherd and team walked to them, one was on the ground holding his leg while his buddy was patching him up. Near them was a crashed turian Wing, and above a harvester was flying away it wasn't hard to put two and two together. They were one of the lucky ones to have survived a dog fight with the reapers. "Soldier! You okay?"

The first turian winced in pain. "Yes sir, we'll make it"

"Have you seen General Victus?" Garrus asked.

"Half hour ago, headed south" the second turian said.

Garrus nodded. "Okay, good luck" They went south to Victus' camp, they hated to leave like that, but the primarch was more important.

"Are they going to be okay?" Kasumi said.

The turian sighed. "I would love to say yes, but…"

"I understand" she said. As they were moving out of the camp, they heard a sound; they looked up in the sky. A ship fell out of the sky like meteor and crashed down the area before them. They watched in horror as the large ship burst into flames. "My god, wasn't that a dreadnought? How many troops were in that crash?"

"Fifty to seventy-five…" he said shaking his head. "Hard to see such a strong ship go down…"

"Not to mention the men and women serving on her…" Shepherd said solemnly. "Let's go" They went down south path and headed for Victus' location, when they turned the corner an explosion blew the team back. Kasumi was the first to get up and checked the wreckage, it was a Wing. No survivors….there was nothing they could do, but continued on the path…As they got closer to the camp, Shepherd noticed his cousin was silent which was unusual for the thief, he wondered if it was because she disturbed from seeing the dead crew. "What wrong Kasumi?"

"Just thinking, do you think this summit will work?" she asked. "I mean, the council races are all well and good, but what about the Krogan, the batarians, the powerhouses"

"As far as Anderson told me, the Batarians were the first to go, hit right out of the gate" Shepherd said. "As for the Krogan…"

"They never forgiven the salarians for creating the genophage and us for deploying it…so they won't be joining us" Garrus said.

"Centuries of mistakes, and now we're paying for it…" They then saw drops over towards the camp.

"That sounds bad!" Kasumi said.

"Double-time people I want that Primarch!" Shepherd ordered. The team ran into the camp, the primarchs men were doing battle reaper forces and was holding their own…barely. Another drop happened behind their lines, and out came cannibals and husks that looked like turians, another race converted into abominations. Garrus gripped his rifle disturbed by the sight; Shepherd understood… it was never easy seeing for a person to see one of their own be turned into monsters. Kasumi and Shepherd then heard a low growl from the turian.

"Damn them!" Garrus said.

"Garrus focus!" Shepherd said. The team took cover at the entrance of the camp, Shepherd froze the cannibals with his cryo blast and the shattered them with a throw field. Kasumi disappeared and flanked the enemy from their side and stripped the marauder of its shields. However when she dropped its shield, another marauder came up and its hand started to glow…the first marauder was lifted up in the air as reddish-black light surrounded it and scabby shell of armor was formed around it. Kasumi shot the turian husk just as it descended the ground, but found it more resistant than before. The cannibals threw a grenade towards Shepherd and Garrus, they rolled out of cover just as it exploded.

Garrus shot the cannibal back with a concussive shot, and then shot the marauders with his viper taking off its head. Shepherd froze the armored marauder and shatters the husk with a throw field; it caused a shockwave of cold air which froze the Cannibals trying to devour the marauder's corpse. Another drop happened further front, revealing two giant husks that soon devastated Victus' men, the turians fought back valiantly but they were no match for they brute strength. When they were finished, the brute headed their way. "Wayne, brutes up ahead!" Kasumi said. The two behemoths came in charging at the team. Shepherd looked around the battlefield and saw a dark grey weapon dropped by the Marauders. He rushes towards the weapon…

"Boss!" Just as they collided, Shepherd rolled under the brutes at the last-minute and grabs the weapon.

"Everyone get down!" Shepherd ordered. Kasumi and Garrus took cover behind the barricade as he pulled the trigger and a red burst came out of the gun. The force of the blast pushed Shepherd back to the ground, when the dust cleared the giant husks was gone. "Holy shit… this thing is as strong as the Cain…" He snapped back to attention when Garrus spoke up.

"Boss, there's more of them and the surrounding Victus' men" Garrus said. Shepherd put the black star on his back and the team rushed to Victus. More drops happened, and Cannibals came out shooting the turian soldiers.

"Move in! Don't let them get close to the Primarch!" Kasumi used her flashbangs to disorient the cannibals and marauders, while Garrus took them down with head shots. Shepherd threw his throw field and knocked the husks off the ledges. Victus' men clean up the rest and the battle was over. Shepherd and team went over to a turian in black and red armor checking on his injured men.

"General Victus?"

The turian turned around. "Yes"

"I'm Commander Wayne Allen Shepherd of the Normandy"

"Ah Commander, I know who you are, I can't wait to find out what brings you here" Victus said. He looked at Garrus. "Valkarian, where did you go?"

"Heavy reaper unit on the right flank, I believe your orders were getting those bastards off your men"

Victus smirked. "Appreciate it" he said. "Now why are you here, Commander?"

"You're needed off-world. I've come to get you"

"It will take something far more important for me to leave my men, my turian brothers and sisters, in their fight"

"Primarch Fedorian was killed, you are the new primarch" Garrus said.

"You're needed immediately to chair a summit and represent your people in the fight against the reapers"

Victus looked back at his burning planet. "I'm primarch of Palaven? Representing the Hierarchy?"

"Yes"

"I spent my whole life in the military, I'm no diplomat, I hate diplomats" he said. "I'm not a by the book kind of guy and I piss people off, my family has been military since the reunification war, war is my life, in my blood"

"Diplomacy is…deceptive, and I hate deception"

"You're perfect; we need someone, who's been through that hell"

"Heh, I like that, you're right"

"And to tell you the truth, uniting these races will take as much strength as fighting the reapers" Shepherd said. "See this devastation, Primarch? Double that for Earth, I need an alliance, I need the turian fleet"

"Give me time to say goodbye to my men" Shepherd nodded.

Garrus sighed. "Without Victus, we could lose this moon. I hope you know that"

"I know, but without him at the summit, we lose everything" They then looked at the reaper closest to them; it was continuing its onslaught of the turian military. Shepherd sighed; things for the turians were only going to get worse before it got better, he was almost reluctant to take Victus away…hell he didn't even know if the summit would even effect anything in the long run...but he had to hold out hope that maybe something would come of this. Garrus shook his head.

"Look at that, and they want my opinion on how to stop it?" He asked. "Failed C-sec officer, vigilante, and I'm their expert advisor?"

"Trust me; I know how you feel…" Shepherd said bitterly.

"Think we can win this…?"

"Don't know, but I'm sure as hell going to give it my best shot"

Garrus chuckled. "I'm damn sure no one else can do it, I'm with ya boss, all the way"

Shepherd pounded his fists with Garrus. "Welcome back"

"Good to be back" Victus walked towards them.

"You ready?" Shepherd asked.

"Yes, but I have to say this, I can't spare the fleets, not while my world burns" he said. "But if the pressure could be taken off…"

"Just what are you suggesting?" Shepherd asked.

"The krogan, I don't see us winning this fight without them, get them to help us and then we can help you"

"The krogan?" Shepherd then smirked; maybe things would not be so bleak after all. "No problem, I'll get them on board"

"Looks like your summit just got interesting" Garrus said.

_**The Normandy**_

Back on the Normandy, Liara was hard at work recruiting scientists for the prothean device, hiring merc groups to help fight on the front line. She was also monitoring and directing her agents to help evacuate colonies or give updates on reaper activity. She then stopped and looked at the screen to her left; it was of Palaven as it was burning from the reaper attack. In reality, all this work was to keep her mind off Palaven and the fact her boyfriend was down there fighting for his life. Tali came to her saying she had met with Garrus just before coming back, so she was a little relived…but situations changed all the time….She shook her head, Garrus was with Shepherd…he would be fine, both were capable soldiers. Liara took a deep breath and went back to work.

"Glyph...any word from the scientists for Gelex Industrial on our offer?" Liara asked. The white drone appeared in front of her, Glyph was an information drone that worked for the old Broker until Liara reprogrammed it. However when she reprogrammed it, it develop some unique 'quirks' such as rewriting EDI scheduled tasks to be more like the Broker's ship. She was lucky EDI allowed it on the ship, as long as the drone stayed in her room.

"They have taken your offer and are heading for Admiral Hackett's fleet" Liara sighed, at least something's were going right. She then heard her door open, it was probably Tali checking up on her, until she heard familiar raspy voice.

"Li…" She looked at the door, and saw Garrus standing at the door. He was safe and well, with a smirk on his face. Liara got out her chair and ran into Garrus' arms, tear streamed from her eyes.

"Goddess, Garrus, I was so worried…" Garrus held her tightly.

"I missed you too, Liara…"

_**The War Room**_

After picking up the Primarch, Shepherd went to speak with the asari councilor on the summit. However, despite Shepherd's best efforts, Tevos made it clear that she had doubts about the summit and it got even worse when he explained that the Victus wanted the krogan at the summit. Shepherd tried to vouch for Victus' plan, it was very sound after all the krogan saved the galaxy from the rachni and almost conquered the galaxy during the rebellions. They would be a huge help against the reapers, however the councilor would not hear of it. "I apologize for being so frank, but this plan is doomed to failure, Shepherd. We've been down this road before…" Tevos said.

"This isn't like the rachni wars, its worse, can't you understand that?"

"It's not just me; to say the salarian dalatrass is upset is an understatement of the year" Shepherd palmed his face; he had forgotten the salarians started the summit in the first place. Salarian and Krogan animosity was as legendary as krogan and turian, salarians created the genophage, the turians deployed it and the krogan hate them both for it.

"This is ridiculous! The galaxy is burning around us and she's worried about a hundred year old grudge?" Shepherd asked. "Whether you like it or not, we're going to need the krogan…"

"Perhaps, but we can't help but feel this is a waste of our time and yours" she said. "We must focus on the arrival of the reapers, so I'm afraid the asari will not be at your summit"

"Look, can you at least let me talk to the dalatrass about this?"

Tevos sighed. "Very well, but this this all I can do for you…" her image faded.

"God…" The PA sounded.

"Commander, Admiral Hackett, is on vidcom"

Shepherd sighed. "Right…" He pressed the button and revealed the Admiral; he looked like he was expecting some good news. He was going to be in for a big surprise…

"Commander, have you retrieved the primarch for the summit?"

"Yes, however the asari won't be joining"

Hackett sighed. "They'll regret that, we need a united front against the reapers"

"We expect salarians with be there, though….along with the…krogan"

"I see…it sounds like you have your hands full, get this alliance done, Commander"

"Sir!" He walked out of the comm room. Victus came to him, no longer in his armor he was now dressed in a suit.

"Commander, thank you again for allowing me use of your ship, and for going along with the plan" he said. "What is the status of the summit?"

"Sorry to say the asari won't be joining us" Shepherd said. "Tevos thinks there's too much bad blood with the krogan"

Victus sighed; he must have expected to go this route. "She may be right, but will be blood, real blood, if we don't try"

"When you put it that way…" The lights then flicked on and off, Shepherd raised his come. "Joker, what the just happened?"

"I don't know, EDI just went offline"

"What do you mean offline?"

"You know, as in turned off, pull the plug, shutting the…"

"I get it!"

"Anyway, she's not responding, and I can't access the AI core diagnostics" He said. "Tali and Adams are at the AI core…you better hurry"

Shepherd sighed and rubbed his head, he didn't need any more problems today. "Got it…" Victus looked at Shepherd with a frown on his face; he knew what was coming next.

"Did he just say AI?" Victus asked.

"Don't worry about it…" Shepherd made his way to the AI Core and met with Tali, Adams and a member of the crew.

"Wayne! I'm glad you're here, EDI's on the fritz"

"I know"

"Automated systems have the fire contained, it should be safe to enter" Adams said. A rumbling sound was heard.

"Shit, Joker what was that?"

"Fire extinguishers, Commander. Electrical fire or something"

"Right, Tali, did you bring your Shotgun?"

Tali turned her waist. "Of course"

Shepherd got out a pistol. "Open it" Adams nodded and opened the door, the crewmember came in and sprayed for anything the extinguishers may have missed, he gave the signal to come in. Shepherd and Tali came in first with their weapons out as they saw something moving in the smoke, what they saw, made their eyes grow wide.

"Hello, Shepherd" It was EDI and she had a body. "Is there a particular topic you wish to discuss?" Tali and Shepherd looked at each other and then EDI as she was examining her new body.

"EDI?" Tali asked.

"Yes"

"You're in Dr. Eva's body…" Shepherd said.

EDI crossed her arms. "Not all of me, but I have control of it. The transition was not seamless"

"A transition? Keelah, you blacked out, what the hell happened?"

"When we brought the unit on board, I began a background process to search for its information on the Prothean device" she said. "This led to a trap, a back-up power source and reboot of the CPU, the unit attempted physical confrontation"

When the smoke cleared, they saw the effect of the confrontation, the walls were burned and banged up, some of the boxes had fallen and were crushed by the struggle. "I'm guessing it didn't end well" Shepherd said dryly.

"Correct, I gained access and repurposed it and it struggled, thus the fire"

"And you couldn't have warned us, before shutting down half our systems?" Tali asked.

"My apologies, but bringing the crew up to speed would have been counterproductive" So one mess had been cleared up, but now there was a new question, what was EDI planning on doing with her new body.

"So, uh…what now?"

"Normandy's weaponry is not suited to every combat situation. This platform could provide limited ground support" EDI said.

"You mean you want to come with us?" Tali asked in disbelief.

"Yes"

Shepherd raised his hand. "Time out, before we get ahead of ourselves, we need to make sure this mech doesn't have more surprises in it" Shepherd said crossing his arms. "Test it, then we'll talk"

"One moment, I am running trials, complete. I will send you a report if you wish" she said. "But I must restore the Normandy's systems and reassure the crew that all is normal"

"Yeah, just don't be surprised, if crew is a little wary of your new bodies, especially Kaiden, it was shooting at them a little while ago…"

"An excellent point, I will take to the bridge. Joker will also want to see it" EDI said walking away.

"I'm sure he would, I think I'll follow you, I need to talk with him…"


	10. Chapter 8: From Ashes pt1

**Chapter 8: From Ashes pt.1**

_**Councilor Tevos' Office**_

Counilor Tevos was at her desk rubbing her forehead in frustration, as a salarian in a dark blue and red robe was pacing the floor in anger. "Please calm yourself, Dalatrass Linron" Tevos pleaded.

Dalatrass Linron, the leader of the Salarian Union in 2186. Described as a "queen bee" of Sur'Kesh's wealthiest bloodline, she retained leadership by a narrow margin in an election to determine the leadership of the Linron bloodline. When the Dalatass heard that the krogan was joining her people's summit she was not happy with the news, in fact she was close to cancel the summit altogether until Councilor Valern reminded her it was for the safety of Sur'Kesh. Tevos had promised Shepherd to get her to at least talk to him, but now she was regretting that promise as all she was getting now as a headache.

Linron looked at her and narrowed her eyes at the Councilor. "Calm myself?! How can I calm myself when Shepherd is thinking about bringing those…those barbarians to the table?!" Linron asked angrily. "He's making the same mistake as we did…."

"To be fair, it wasn't actually Shepherd that proposed this, it was the new Primarch" she said.

"That only makes it worse; doesn't that turian know what the krogan did to their colonies during the rebellions?" She knew she was talking about the last days of the Krogan Rebellion, when the krogan attacked the turian colonies by tossing fusion torch-powered asteroids rendering whole planet uninhabitable. This lead to the turians using genophage that made only one in a thousand births a success. She remembered it vividly, back then she was a newly appointed Councilor after her predecessor Halsa K'ol stepped down due to scandal.

"He knows dalatrass, but these are desperate times…"

Linron scoffed. "So desperate that they need to re-enact the krogan rebellions…" she said. "I tell you this will only end in disaster…"

"I understand how upset you are, but Shepherd said that he would not go ahead, without talking to you first" The Dalatrass looked at Tevos.

"He said that?"

"Yes, perhaps you can bargain with him, so that he doesn't require the krogan"

Linron narrowed her eyes. "Would he listen though? I heard he was quite stubborn"

"He can be, but he'll work with you. So I'm sure you'll make him see reason"

"Very well, I will talk to him and make him see the error of his ways" Linron said as she walked away.

Tevos sighed and sat back in her chair. "Now she can bother Shepherd…"

_**The Normandy**_

As they came up to the CIC to get to the cockpit, the crew stopped as they saw EDI in her new body. The men and some of the women could not keep their eyes of the AI until they saw Shepherd, who was not in an amused mood and quickly got back to work. Shepherd came to the cockpit, to confront Joker on the matter of EDI gaining a new body; he had a sinking suspicion that his pilot was responsible for this, that was until Shepherd saw him. When Joker saw the EDI taking her place beside him, his eyes went wide and then he was drooling like schoolboy having his first crush.

"Hey, Commander! Check out my copilot!" Joker said excitedly.

The spectre crossed his arms. "She plugged herself into a Cerberus mech without authorization" Shepherd said. "And she couldn't have done it alone…"

Joker looked at Shepherd like he had been slapped. "Come on Commander don't you trust me?" Shepherd gave him a look, he trusted him the pilot with his life when it came to flying the ship, but potentially doing something stupid…no. Joker put his hand up defensively, expecting an answer. "Okay, let me put it this way, if I had known she was going to install herself in a sexy robot body, do you think I would have kept quiet?"

"Besides she is technically Cerberus tech…"

Shepherd pinched the bridge of his nose. "Not helping, Joker"

"I've seen her report; she's still based in the Normandy. Running this body just gives her a little more flexibility" He said. Joker shuddered. "Sweet, sweet flexibility…" Shepherd looked at EDI, he wouldn't have thought it was possible, but the AI looked down and gave a shy look. He guessed EDI wasn't yet used to the new-found attention Joker was giving her, she looked like a shy girl getting noticed by her crush for the first time. It would be kind of cute, if it wasn't for the fact he didn't quite trust that body yet.

"I'm right here Jeff…" EDI said bashfully.

The pilot gave a huge grin. "Yes you are, EDI. Yes you are…" Joker said lewdly.

Shepherd shook his head. "Joker, you need to get out more…" The PA opened.

"Commander, you have a message at your private terminal…"

"Thanks Traynor, as for you Joker, focus on flying the ship and not drooling on EDI"

"Yeah, yeah…"

Shepherd went back to the Galaxy Map and read his terminal, it was from Alliance Command. Shepherd frowned from reading this. "Joker, set a course for Eden Prime, Cerberus is up to no good again…"

"Aye-aye, ETA, four hours"

_This idyllic agrarian world was one of the first human colonies established beyond the Charon mass relay. Eden Prime's fertile biosphere drew heavy immigration by the Systems Alliance and other human organizations._

_In 2183, Eden Prime was attacked by a geth force led by the rogue Spectre Saren Arterius. Commander Shepard, responding to the attack, encountered a Prothean beacon that warned of imminent Reaper invasion. It is thanks to this beacon, and the Commander's quick action, that the galaxy has any chance of survival today._

_Though the Reapers rushed past much of the Exodus Cluster in their plan to take Earth, it is clear the war has come to Eden Prime. Distress signals have jammed all available frequencies, fires burn in vast swaths across the arable land, and its once-extensive monorail system is twisted metal. It is clear that Cerberus has much to lose if word of their ruthless attack on the human colony gets out. What they stand to gain must be equally valuable.-Codex_

Eden Prime, the colony that changed Shepherd's life forever, it started off simple enough…find and secure the Prothean beacon the locals dug up. While on this mission he was scouted by a turian Spectre named Nihlus Kryik as a possible recruit into the spectres. However things were never that simple as he soon found out later…The shuttle flew down to the planet's surface, their target was a prothean item dug up by Cerberus. To ensure that no one would get in the way they occupied the planet, however the locals were not happy with Cerberus taking their freedom away created a resistance to kick the terrorist group off the planet. So far it had been a blood bath with Cerberus outmatching the rebels in weapons and manpower.

Liara looked at the screen. "Eden Prime….where it all began…" Liara said. "Where the Prothean beacon gave you the vision about the reapers"

"Hard to believe it's been three years…" Kaiden said.

"I heard you lost someone on your mission…." She said.

"Jenkins…ambushed by a geth drone, tore through his shields and he died instantly" Shepherd said solemnly. "He was from Eden Prime, he wanted to save it, but instead he died before he could do anything…."

"It wasn't your fault, Wayne, it was your first time fighting geth, and you couldn't have known their tactics" Kaiden said.

Shepherd lowered his head. "I was the leader…it was my duty to make sure he lived…" he said. "As much as I wished things could change, I can't…"

"Shepherd…"

"I'm fine, let's just focus on this item" Liara and Kaiden nodded. "Do you know what it is?"

"The Alliance didn't give specifics, but I do know this, its better with us than with Cerberus"

"I'm bringing you close to the dig site" Cortez said. "No way we'll avoid detection, but you should have a few minutes"

"Understood" He faced the rest of the team. "Let's move everybody"

"With luck, we can get to the dig site before Cerberus knows we're here" The shuttle landed in the settlement and the mission has begun. It was eerily empty due to Cerberus rounding up the citizens and placing them in holding camps so they could research the item without interruptions. Those that resisted were killed no question's asked, several days ago the resistance they to take back the settlement from Cerberus but they were all wiped out before they could even get close, so now the rebels were scattered packets of people resorting hit and run tactics. Another thing Alliance Command ask them to do was find some way to aid the resistance, however it had to covertly as the extra attention could be lethal to their efforts

"No sign of survivors, come on, we need to find the dig site" As they walked, Shepherd looked around. This was not the first time the colony had faced hell…three years ago when Shepherd and his team were trying to secure the beacon they found they weren't the only one looking for the beacon. The geth and Saren were looking for the beacon to bring back the reapers, they killed and converted a lot of people trying to secure the beacon, and when Saren succeeded he was going to wipe the settlement off the map just to cover their tracks. Shepherd was able to stop the bomb, though not without cutting it close. Three years later it seemed like history was repeating itself…

"This was a beautiful colony once" Shepherd said.

"They rebuilt it before; they can do it again…" Kaiden said.

Shepherd sighed. "They rebuilt Mindoir too, but it wasn't the same…" he said. "They deserve better"

"I know…"Shepherd looked at the surrounding environment; out in the far distance was a structure sticking out of the ground. What it used to be, that was up for debate as he didn't what it was.

"Prothean tech, sticking out of the ground like an old bone"

"Liara, do you know what that is?" Kaiden asked.

"I can't tell from here, but it looks like remnants from their final dynasty" She said. "Functional, but without the decoration of earlier periods"

"Archeologists wondered with their structures became simpler at the end" Liara said. "It's clear now; they were too busy fighting the reapers to care about aesthetics"

Shepherd frowned. "If we don't stop them, the same will happen to us" They went into the building, they found two bodies at the entrance bodies full of bullet holes, at their side was a pistol and assault rifle, both wore bandanas around their mouths. Resistance members…Shepherd noticed a terminal to his right. He reads the log. "Cerberus data, just lying around, they got careless"

"Shepherd, this could help the colonists alive on other parts of Eden Prime" Liara said. "The intel could help the colonists fight back"

"Good idea, I'll forward it…"

The team came out of the building and went across the bridge that was retracted; next to it was a terminal. Liara walked to it while Shepherd and Kaiden watched for Cerberus. As she worked to extend the bridge, her eyes went wide and she walked backwards in shock. "Goddess, that's not possible…" She said. Kaiden and Shepherd looked back as Liara ran across the now extended bridge.

"Liara?" They ran after her where they saw her watching black pod rising to the surface. Liara still had a look of awe and wonder, Shepherd snapped her out of her trance. "Hey what's wrong?"

Liara looked at them. "Cerberus didn't find a prothean artifact, they found actual Prothean"

Shepherd and Kaiden looked each other. "You mean like a Collector" Kaiden said.

Liara shook her head. "No, Cerberus found a living Prothean"

"But they're extinct! How?" Shepherd asked shocked.

"The protheans had powerful stasis technology; it's the reason any of their artifacts have survived mostly intact" She said. "Cerberus found this in an underground bunker, what's amazing is that it still has power"

"To think he's been asleep for the past 50,000 years, image what we can learn…"

"So what can you tell me about them? The people I mean" the spectre said.

"I think you know more than me, considering you have the Cypher, but the Prothean Empire spanned the entire galaxy, they uplifted countless species to help them join the galactic community"

"So like what the salarians did with the Krogan?" Kaiden asked.

"Yes, but they was mostly successful, and judging from the dig sites like the Archives on Mars, they wanted other species to learn" she said. "It's clear that they value knowledge, growth, and cooperation with the rest of the galaxy" That sounded very much like Liara's people, the asari was responsible for uplifting the Elcor and bringing the salarians and volus into the galactic civilization. Even their doctrine of knowledge, growth and cooperation was similar to the asari…it was almost eerie how much they sounded alike.

"Sounds familiar…" Kaiden said.

Liara rubbed her head sheepishly. "Of course I might be simply coloring them with my culture"

Shepherd crossed his arms as he looked at the pod, the most dominant race of their time that was mostly successful at uplifting the other races to the galactic community and yet they had no records of other races, just the Protheans. "Seems too friendly to me…I doubt they could have been the top dogs of their time just by playing nice all the time"

"Of course, they had a very strong military, too…" She said. "In any case finding one alive is an incredible discovery"

Shepherd smirked. "Well, good thing we brought our resident Prothean nerd then"

"I hope I can help" Liara said. "If this prothean was sent into stasis, then he could the foremost scientist or their wisest councilor"

"Well, let's get him out and find out" Shepherd reached for the pod, only to be stopped by Liara.

"Wait! Cerberus damaged the life pod; his life signs are unstable…"

"So if we try to pry it open, he'll die?" Kaiden asked.

"Yes, we need to find the command signal that ends stasis mode" she said. "We also need to find a way to open the pod without causing more damage"

"Cerberus took over the labs nearby, so looking there is our best bet" Kaiden spoke up.

"Uh guys, speaking of Cerberus, here they come…" The team got to cover as the Cerberus shuttle landed, out came some troopers, the Centurion. A shot rang out as bullet struck Shepherd. Luckily only his shields took the damage, Cerberus brought snipers with them the team quickly took cover near the walls ahead.

"Don't let them get close, wipe them out!"


	11. Chapter 9: From Ashes pt2

**Chapter 9: From Ashes pt2**

The Centurion threw out some smoke grenades, while the team's sight was obscured; the Nemesis took aim and fired. Kaiden cried out in pain as he held his shoulder. "Kaiden!" Liara said. While the Nemesis pinned the team in cover, the Centurions and trooper went in to flank the team. Liara patched up Kaiden's shoulder while, Shepherd threw out a lift grenade. He couldn't quite see as the smoke wasn't quite cleared yet, but he could hear some men shouting. The Cerberus soldiers opened fired. Shepherd took control of the Centurion and forced him to attack his own allies he then activated his tech armor, and got out of cover.

"Take care of Kaiden" he said. Liara nodded, Shepherd rushed forward blasting the troopers with his Viper shotgun, it wasn't the most accurate guns out there but it packed a punch. When he got to the Centurion, after he shook off his Dominate, he charged his shotgun and punch a hole in him shield and all. However the Nemesis fired at Shepherd and broke his shield causing him to get to cover. Shepherd switched to his Locust and took pot shots at the sniper; however she was very nimble dodging his gunfire. She took aim until there was a spark coming from her, Shepherd looked to his side and saw that Kaiden overloaded the sniper's shield, and he was back in action.

Liara came up and lifted the Nemesis up into the air with her singularity field. Shepherd used his throw field to knock her off the building, killing the sniper, Liara and Kaiden caught up with Shepherd. "You okay?"

"Nothing Dr. Chakwas can't patch up…" Kaiden said. He looked at the path before them. "No way was that all of them…"

"Agreed, let's wrap this up quickly" The team went into the buildings on the left, looking for the signal to release the prothean. Shepherd found more data on Cerberus "More Cerberus logs…" Liara came over and looked at the data.

"Troop deployments, this will be useful for the colonists" she said.

"Forward it"

"Already done…" All of the sudden, gunshots hit the room they were in. "Get down!" The rapid-firing guns made a mess of the room, shattering window, shredding furniture; Shepherd looked over cover, and saw an automated turret scanning for them. Next to it, were two engineers, one who already set up a turret and another that set up another turret. To the back of them were more troopers and Centurions.

"This is going to be tricky…" Shepherd said. Shepherd got out his hydra. "Divide and Conquer, on three….three!" The team scattered, Liara and Kaiden taking the back to flank the enemy. The turrets targeted Shepherd, while the troopers fired on Kaiden and Liara. Kaiden overloaded the turret's shield while Liara froze the Centurions and troopers in a Stasis bubble. Shepherd fired his hydra and took down the first turret and the frozen Centurions and troopers, the first engineer was going to set up another turret, Shepherd used dominate on the engineer, making him attack the second Engineer that was trying to repair the second turret. Out of the building to the rear, came two Guardians that tried to flank the team from behind.

Liara used her singularity field to separate them from their shields; Kaiden froze them with his cryo blast. Shepherd shattered them against the wall, ending the fight. They came to a building with lots of Cerberus tech ahead of them "There! That lab found the prothean footage; Cerberus was researching on how to open the pod." Liara said. They went inside the lab where there was one big terminal that made up the room, Shepherd went to it to look for the data, the screen instantly changed to a scene of battle, at first it was nothing but static, but then it gotten clearer. The spectre's eyes went wide as his eye glowed green, his head felt clouded and everything went white.

_Shepherd opened his eyes to a sky of red and a smell of smoke. He found himself on the ground and rose to his feet. "Where am I?" he asked. "Liara? Kaiden? Anyone?" He looked around; he did not recognize this place. He then heard sounds of screams and a familiar mechanical growl that made the spectre's blood run cold. He turned around and found himself on the same ledge and his eyes went wide, it was the same ruins he saw on the colony, only it wasn't a ruin it was part of a city. Eden Prime…fifty thousand years ago…._

_In the middle of the city was a reaper destroying whole city blocks with more of them coming from the sky to join in the carnage. He heard screams below; Shepherd looked down and saw aliens he never seen before running from the Collectors. Their heads are covered in a thick, layered carapace that gives them a distinctive shape. The skin surrounding this carapace is a pale blue-gray color mottled with muted yellow spots. Their hands each have three fingers, and their feet each have two widely spaced toes. They had two pairs of eyes with each eye possessing dual pupils, and three pairs of nostrils. There were whispers in his head, he knew what those aliens were…Protheans. The Collectors cornered the civilians, the one that Shepherd took noticed was a female prothean holding her scared child "No…stop…" Shepherd said in horror. The Collectors raised their weapons and fired. "STOP IT!" A mechanical growl was heard above him, a reaper landed, its red eye glowed…it was about to fire and Shepherd was right in the line of fire. The reaper fired, Shepherd braced himself but he felt nothing, it wasn't real, only an illusion. He looked below, and looked with horror the protheans and Collectors were gone, vaporized…the only thing left was their dust…_

_The world went white, and this time he was in a different part of the colony, he saw protheans in red armor running, firing weapons, they were fighting the collectors, Prothean soldiers. They were trying to hold the line as the Collectors came after them; they were using a strange weapon that shot out a stream of green energy. Any Collector that got hit was turned to blue-green goo. They were holding their own; especially the one in the front….he must have been the leader, but the Collectors kept coming backing them into a corner. One of the protheans fell, shot in the neck by an ammo round, the leader growled and glowed green lifting the Collector that shot his men and slammed it against the wall. More came and the leader pushed them back with a biotic force. He took the hand of his dead men and pulled him into a bunker. As it closes, the leader and the remainder of his men kept the Collectors from getting close._

"_I never thought our empire would fall" one of the prothean said. Shepherd was amazed he could understand their language, then he remembered his time on Illos it was the same then. The Cypher he gotten from Shiala had somehow let him understand Prothean. _

"_It won't…"the leader said. Although, he had a hard time convincing himself. "We will sleep here until the reapers return to dark space. Then we will rise, a million strong"_

"_For the empire"_

"_And the lasting glory of the prothean race, get to your pod, soldier" The soldier nodded and walked away. "Victory, broadcast the stasis readiness signal to all life-pods"_

_A hologram appeared. "And the refugees?"_

_The prothean commander hesitated, it was the same hesitation he felt when Shepherd left Earth. "Their sacrifice will be honored in the coming empire…" The bunker shook and the collectors came pouring in. The prothean commander took out his gun, ready to fight. The world went white._

He felt himself being shaken as he heard a voice, he opened his eyes and saw he was in Kaiden's arms; both he and Liara had concerned looks on their faces. They gave a sigh of relief "Thank god…" Kaiden said. Shepherd looked around he found himself back in the lab, on the floor. He got back to his feet, his legs shaking at first and then his legs gave out. Kaiden held him up; whatever happened to him it was still in effect. His senses were still ringing from the vision.

"Goddess, are you alright?" Liara asked concerned.

"Yeah…what happened?" Shepherd said holding his head.

"You just passed out, one minute you were on the terminal, the next the floor" Kaiden said. "Wayne what the hell happened?"

"I…I don't know….I saw visions….I don't understand them myself" Shepherd said. "But I got the signal…"

"You got it? All we saw and heard was static" Kaiden said.

"It must have been the Cypher; his mind read the data like a prothean would"

Shepherd shook his head, his head was finally cleared and he broke away from his friend. "Would have liked it more, if I wasn't force fed the information…" he said. "Either way, I got it…"

Liara nodded. "Now we just need data on how to open the pod" The team went into the next building and was met with a grisly sight. Dead soldiers in black armor with a gold insignia from the local security firm each with a bullet in the head, Shepherd checked the viewer, there was a game on.

"Gunned down, while having a few drinks and watching a game"

"Bastards, this wasn't a base, it was someone's home…" Kaiden said angrily. They then heard the sound of radio chatter. The team looked over the next area, Cerberus troops, and they didn't seem to notice them.

"Pre-emptive strike…" Liara said.

"Kaiden, flank them from behind, Liara you're with me…" Shepherd and Liara took their positions, and Shepherd took control of one of the troopers, and the trooper opened fired. The possessed trooper shot the engineer and the Nemesis and the head.

"What are you doing?!" one of the troops said alarmed. The trooper however continued to fire on his allies, forcing them to gun him down.

"Now!" Liara used her singularity to lift the enemies, while Kaiden froze them. Shepherd then finished them off with an incineration blast. The team met with each other, and Liara find some data in the dead trooper's omni-tool.

"Information on the resistance, this can help the colonists push Cerberus off Eden Prime" After Liara forwarded the info to the resistance, the team went inside the lab, and Shepherd went to the terminal. Shepherd then felt a hand on his shoulder, the spectre looked back at his friends they had looks of concern on their faces.

"Are you sure about this? You could black out like you did before" Liara said.

"We need that pod open, I'll risk it" Shepherd said. He started to press some buttons. "Just be ready…" Kaiden and Liara nodded. Shepherd pressed the final button and the world went white.

_Shepherd found himself back into Eden Prime's past, back to the place the vision left off. The protheans were in the middle of getting into their pods, there were mummers, the soldiers were unsure if they would survive but leader started talking and eased their nerves at least for now. Shepherd the leader and knew differently, he too was also getting weary but kept on strong. Shepherd was amazed at the willpower of the race, fighting the reapers for centuries. The spectre hoped that their cycle could hold out as long as they did. The leader approached the VI. "How many have we lost?"_

"_Reaper forces have destroyed 300,000 life pods" Victory said. The prothean commander opens a life pod only to see the scorched remains one of his people, he pulled the body out._

_He sighed. "A third of our people…." _

"_Alert! North side bulkhead cannot be sealed. Hostiles detected!"_

"_Then all forces to the north!" the commander said walking away. The world went white._

Shepherd woke up on the floor again; he seemed to recover much faster than the first time. "You okay?" Kaiden asked.

Shepherd got off the floor. "Yeah" he said. "I got the code"

"Then we have everything we need…" Liara said. As the team got out of the room, they heard a shuttle fly by. They were heading for the prothean pod.

"Damn it lets move!" The team went to the bridge that connected the prothean pod, only to find the bridge retracted. "Fuck, let's find another way" Kaiden spoke up.

"Wayne, there's a path down here!" Shepherd and Liara nodded and the team went down the path, only to get shot at.

"Get to cover!" Liara lifted the troopers with her singularity field, Shepherd and Kaiden both threw throw field that made the soldiers fall of the ledge.

"More of them, behind us!" Liara said. Her eyes went wide. "Heavy weapon!" The trooper fired and Kaiden went in front and created a barrier, which knocked them back.

"Liara! Together!" Shepherd said. Liara froze the trooper and Shepherd threw a warp field, wiping him out. "Get to the building!" The team climbed the building and was met by Cerberus troopers shooting at them while they were traversing the roof. Shepherd took out his hydra and fired. The multiple missiles wiped out the people shooting at them. Kaiden threw a lift grenade at the troopers, while Liara shot them with her Carafex. They made it to the pod.

"Looks like we got time before they regroup" Kaiden said. Shepherd nodded and imputed the signal into the pod.

"It's in"

"Perfect. It'll take a few minutes for the life pod to process it"

"Wayne, company!" The team got to cover as the shuttle appeared.

"Hit them before they land!" Shepherd said. Kaiden nodded and pushed the trooper back in the Shuttle. Shepherd fired his hydra at the shuttle and it went down in flames. To his left he could hear the sound of heavy footsteps, they going to try to catch them off guard by using the building. "Liara, in the building, don't let them flank us!"

"On it!"

"Wayne, another shuttle inbound"

"Well I got plenty of missiles for them to eat" Shepherd said with a smirk. "Ready to do this?"

"Like you need to ask" Kaiden said. A shuttle was about to land and Shepherd fired more missiles at the shuttles. Liara meanwhile, was busy shutting down Cerberus' attempts at flanking the team.

"Shepherd! More shuttles incoming!"

"Got it!" He fired another missile at the shuttle; however some of the troops made it to the ground. "And now it gets fun…"


	12. Chapter 10: From Ashes pt3

**Chapter 10: From Ashes pt3**

The battle continued, as the battle became longer Cerberus became much more aggressive. From the side Guardians dropped in and went in to the building, while the Centurions threw out smoke grenades to block their vision. Liara lifted them up with a singularity field and Shepherd blasted them back with his Venom shotgun, the rounds hit the wall and split into mini cluster bombs turning them into bloody puddles. Another shuttle roared over them and dropped three troopers in. "Kaiden, freeze them!" Shepherd said. Kaiden used his cryo blast to freeze the approaching troopers in their tracks. Shepherd then used his incinerate to shatter the iced soldiers. After a while, the troopers stopped coming allowing the team to catch their breaths.

"How are we on ammo?" Liara asked.

"Almost out…" Kaiden said.

"Yeah, I've only down to two missiles, we're in a bad spot" Shepherd said. "May need to call the Normandy for support" The team went to check on the pod.

"Half way through, it will open soon" Liara said. The comm opened.

"Commander, whatever you're doing, you need to do it quick Cerberus shuttles are inbound, along with something big" Cortez said.

"So much for catching our breath…" Shepherd said. "Get to your positions" Kaiden and Liara nodded.

"Here they come!" Kaiden said. The troopers flooded the field and they fired on the team. Liara trapped the soldiers in her singularity field, while Shepherd threw a warp field causing an explosion. Kaiden threw more lift grenades, and shot the troopers in midair. Cerberus was for the most part dropping like flies, until the centurions started to throw smoke grenades at the team and stopped attacking.

Liara frowned. "What are they up to?"

"Don't know, keep your eyes peeled" Shepherd said. They then felt a huge rumbling, and it was approaching fast. Out of the smoke came a huge grey heavy mech with a large gun and missile launcher. "Now we know why…" The mech came towards them slowly.

"Light it up!" The team used their biotic powers on the mech, but it had no effect. They tried bullets, but it bounced off the mech. Shepherd and Kaiden used their overload to drain its shields it was much more effective, but the mech's shields were strong. The mech fired a missile at them, caused the team to scatter to cover. When the smoke cleared, there was a crater from where they were.

"Holy…if we didn't move…that would have been us…." Kaiden said.

"We need a new plan Shepherd" Liara said. Shepherd scanned for the mech's weakness, and noticed the mech's tinted screen; inside he saw a person shaped silhouette…the mech was being piloted.

"Okay, new plan, aim for the cockpit, if we kill the pilot then the mech is useless" Kaiden and Liara nodded. Liara equipped her warp ammo to her pistol and took shots at the mech's cockpit. While Shepherd and Kaiden lowered its shields, when the shields went down, they joined Liara in taking down the cockpit. However the mech kept coming, blasting the team with its gun and missiles respectively, even with their more heavy weapons the machine was sturdy. When the mech got too close for comfort, they would go into building where it couldn't get them, the mech continued to fire on them while in they were in the building hoping to put pressure on them. Colony houses weren't the prettiest things out there but they could take hits as close as tank fire. Still they couldn't let this continue, the team continued their onslaught of bullets and weapons to keep the heavy mech off-balance. After a while their constant stream of attacks finally took their toll on the cockpit and the pilot was exposed.

"Game over" Shepherd said as he his bullet tore through the pilot's skull. Shepherd's com opened.

"Commander, more Cerberus troops incoming, hurry!" Cortez said.

"This is bad we're almost out of ammo, that mech took almost everything we had." Kaiden said. He then saw Shepherd running towards the mech. "Wayne, what are you…?"

"Go to the pod and protect it, I'll deal with the troops, go!" Shepherd ordered. Cerberus troops came in by shuttle as Shepherd climbed onboard. He piloted the mech and took aim at the shuttles, one after another were falling as Kaiden and Liara took care of the stragglers on the ground. After a while, the shuttle and the soldiers stopped coming.

"Cortez?"

"Cerberus is being pushed back by the colonists, they're stretched too thin, and it won't be long until they're pushed off the planet"

"Good, tell them of the weapons cache we found in our area, I'm sure they want to arm themselves"

"Aye, Commander" Shepherd went to join Kaiden and Liara at the pod.

"Well?"

"It's done…" The pod started to open to reveal a prothean, Shepherd recognized the prothean it was the leader he saw in his vision. "Goddess…a real prothean in the flesh…this is amazing…"

"So how is he? Any permanent damage?" Kaiden said.

"No, not what we can see anyway…though it may take some time for him to awaken" They then heard sounds; to their surprise the prothean was awake. He looked around and breathed heavily, he glowed green and pushed the team back with a biotic blast. While the team was dazed the prothean got out of the pod, only to drop to his knees. Shepherd was the first one to get to his feet, the prothean glared back and got up to attack, his target: Shepherd, he threw a green biotic field at the spectre Shepherd raised his barrier and almost staggered backward. Shepherd hadn't felt such a strong biotic attack since Liara's mother, Shepherd re-directed to the sky. The prothean attacked again, this time the force of his biotic blast almost made his legs give out.

"Be careful, he's confused" Liara said.

"Tell him that!" Shepherd said struggling. Shepherd re-directed the biotic blast to his side, where it caused a dent in the wall of house beside him. He then glowed blue and pushed him back with a biotic throw. The prothean staggered back and glowed green preparing for another attack again. _"Why don't you chill out before you get hurt?"_

The prothean looked at him with wide eyes, Shepherd looked surprised also, he didn't expect to be able to speak prothean. It seems the Cypher gave him more than just the visions and the ability to understand the language. The prothean spoke up. _"You speak our language? A primitive?"_

"_It seems so…And it Commander to you"_ Shepherd said.

The prothean looked back as Kaiden, and Liara went to join Shepherd._"Species#457 Human, of planet Earth and Species#550 Asari of planet Thessia, I'm surrounded by primitives…" _The Prothean scoffed.

Shepherd frowned, he didn't expect protheans to be so abrasive nor that did he like his attitude. _"Pretty arrogant for the last prothean in existence"_

The prothean looked at him and lowered his head. _"I see, so my cycle ended" _Shepherd now felt bad about what he said, while his people just lost Earth at least his people still existed. This soldier was fish out of water, his race and his home no longer existed, he was in a world full of strangers.

"_I saw the last moments of your people…I'm sorry…"_

The prothen closed his eyes and gave a deep breath._ "So we have failed…"_

Shepherd shook his head. _"No, your people did everything they could" he said. "And never gave up…I could use that dedication, if you can curb the attitude" _The shuttle landed near them, the prothean looked back at him, Shepherd recognized those eyes those were the eyes of resolve. He may have lost his people, but maybe with these strangers he could avenge his people.

"_You fight the reapers?"_

"_Yes" Shepherd said._

"_Very well, I will join you prim…Commander"_ The prothean said walking away. Shepherd looked back at Kaiden and Liara who was staring at him at him with wide eyes. He sighed, he knew was coming….

"Look I know this may be a shock…"

"A shock? Wayne, I thought my translator was on the fritz…" Kaiden said. "What the hell was that?

The spectre rubbed his head. "I can speak the Prothean language fluently" Shepherd said.

Kaiden blinked. "But, how?"

Before Shepherd could explain, Liara spoke up, her eyes lighting up…she was very reminiscent of that asari he met three years ago. With living a prothean coming back with them and hear the prothean language the spectre surprised Liara didn't have a heart attack right now. "It must be the Prothean Cypher, this is amazing, to see a conversation in a dead language, fascinating…." Liara said in awe.

Shepherd shook his head; he was too tired for this shit. He raised his hand and Liara stopped. "Nerd out after we find out who he is" The team followed the prothean into the shuttle.

_**The Normandy**_

Back on the Normandy, the prothean was told to go down to Grunt's old room, until he could do something with him. The prothean frown at the human, Shepherd guessed he wasn't used to another person giving him orders, but he closed his eyes and took a deep breath and ultimately did what he said. As the prothean went to the elevator, the crew looked at him wearily especially the former Cerberus crew, not surprising since their run in with the Collector a year ago. Liara went with him to possibly bug him with questions; she wouldn't let a little thing like a language barrier stop her from quenching her thirst for knowledge.

Meanwhile Shepherd went into the war room to give his report to Admiral Hackett, to say he was surprised was an understatement. "A living Prothean?" Hackett asked.

"Yep, not at all what I expected…"

"Commander, our scientists barely understand what they need to do with this device" he said. "If the prothean can help us with the device, we need his cooperation"

"I know, except there's one problem…he can't speak our language and I'm the only one who can speak and understand his language"

Hackett frowned. "Wait how?"

"From the Cypher I got on Feros, it seem it was more than just information on the Mu relay"

"I see, but get it done, we're losing colonies faster than we can evacuate them, and we've never seen a force like the reapers" he said.

"He has, Admiral and I attend to find out if he can help us"

Hackett nodded. "Good, Cerberus slipped up and gave us a new weapon, don't let it go to waste, Hackett out" Shepherd's com opened.

"Shepherd, I need you down in engineering, it's our new guest" Liara said.

Shepherd sighed. "On it…" He went down in engineering; the prothean was surrounded by his armed crewmembers. The prothean just sat on his knees calmly and just glared at Shepherd. "What's the problem?"

"I tried to make the room accommodating, but they won't let me near him"

"Sorry Doc, but contact protocol with a new species: "Assume hostility" We had to dust off the regulation."

"But he's not new, not really anyway, I spent my life studying protheans" Liara said.

"Everyone at ease, I don't think out friend will be a problem" Shepherd said. He then looked at the prothean. _"Will he?"_

"_That depends on you" _He then grabbed Shepherd and the crew lifted their weapons. "I can sense fear in you. Anxiety and distress. The reapers are winning" He let go of Shepherd.

"What do you mean 'you sense'?" Shepherd asked. "And how can you speak our language?"

The prothean went to the tub of water. "All life provides clues to those who can read them. It is in your cells, your DNA. Experience is a biological marker as is language"

"Then what did I experience back on Eden Prime? That was a hell of a flashback"

"The battle left its own mark on me, I communicated it to you. It can work both ways"

"Like your beacons?"

"Yes, which…" The prothean touched him again. The visions of the prothean extinction came back to Shepherd, only this time, the prothean could see now. "You found…one…our…warnings, our destruction…" He said. He then got angry. "Why weren't they heeded? Why didn't you prepare for their arrival, human?!"

"It's Commander, and nobody could understand your warnings, the beacon almost put me in a coma"

The prothean scoffed and walked back to the tub of water. "Then communication is still primitive in this cycle…" Shepherd crossed his arms, he was starting to wonder if all protheans were huge pricks or it was just him, either way he was getting sick of his better than thou attitude. The spectre kept calm, if he was going to be working with him he will have to get used to him.

"We piece together what we could and stopped a reaper invasion three years ago…" Shepherd said.

The prothean looked at him. "It was delayed?"

"Yes, we now have the plans for the device your people was working on, we're building it right now" Liara said.

"Device?"

Liara opened her omni-tool and a holographic image of the device appeared. "The weapon your people were working on, I'd hope you could tell us how to finish it…"

The prothean looked at the plans and sighed. "We never finished it, we were too late"

"I'm guessing you don't know about the Catalyst either?" Shepherd asked.

"No, I was a soldier, not a scientist skilled in one thing: killing"

"Back to square one…" Shepherd said.

"But you fight the reapers; therefore, I will fight for you, commander"

The spectre nodded. "So, what should I call?"

"I have no name, but you may call me Javik "

"Javik? I recognize that name, isn't it the name of a deity in Prothean folklore?" Liara asked.

Javik nodded. "He was the god of vengeance, fitting for the last prothean, wouldn't you agree?" he asked coldly. His words gave the spectre a cold chill down his spine; he had a feeling that if push came to shove he would sacrifice him and his crew to kill the reapers. He went to the screen with the reapers with it. "When the last reaper falls, my purpose will be fulfilled, until then I have no other purpose"

He looked back. "Those who share my purpose are allies, those who not are casualties"

Shepherd frowned, he hate it when his gut was right… "Nothing in our fight has been that cut and dry"

Javik turned and narrowed his eyes. "Because you still have hope that this war will end with your honor intact?"

"I do"

"Stupid and naïve fool, can you stand in the ashes of a trillion dead and ask them if honor still matters?" Shepherd didn't answer. Javik scoffed. "I thought so…" The com came up.

"Uh Commander?"

"What is it, Joker?" Shepherd asked never taking his eye off Javik.

"A Dalatrass Linron, want to speak to you, she has agreed to meet with you, so did Wrex"

"Got it" Shepherd said walking away. "Javik, you said once that holding on to your honor was foolish, that may be so, but I will fight to keep it intact"

"What would be the point?"

"That's easy, because I'm not them; my honor is the one thing that keeps me from being like them"

Javik glared at him. "Are you comparing me to the reapers?"

"I don't know, only time will tell…"


	13. Chapter 11a: Sur'Kesh pt1

**Chapter 11a: Sur'Kesh pt.1**

_**Javik's Room**_

Liara was in Javik's room asking the prothean questions on his culture, now that he could understand their language everyone was coming down to check on him. Rather it was the old female human doctor, or the idiotic male human engineer that keeps on talking about the females on the ship...they were all annoying. He didn't need friendship or any that compassion nonsense, all he needed was capable allies that could help kill all the reapers and so far he was not impressed. Especially with the human leading them, when he touched Shepherd he could feel it…the impulsiveness, his emotions flowed like a river, and his damn compassion…how he gotten this far was beyond him.

So far nothing about this cycle has been what he expected; they still had the Citadel under their control. During Javik's cycle, the Citadel had been lost when the reapers first attacked, by the time he was born the Citadel was nothing more than a myth. This cycle had potential but only time would tell if the primitives will live up to it. Liara spoke up, and Javik snorted…again with the questions…She looked at him, her eyes lit up with anticipation it annoyed him.

"Hope you know this is a huge honor to me, I've written countless studies about your people and published several journals…" Liara said.

"Interesting, the asari have finally master writing…"

Liara was taken aback. "I'm sorry...?"

Javik turned his head. "Nothing, hurry up with your questions…"

Liara went to attention. "O..Of course…I've always wondered…your species was the only space-faring civilization at the time, I always found that strange" Before he could answer the door opened to reveal a turian coming in, another primitive of his time, back in his time the turians (or species#125 as they were known) were savage and cunning hunters. The primitive turian composed of family groups called cabals, which was lead by the alpha male and alpha female. Now they were this cycle's largest military force and one of their leaders, they would have been fine additions of the empire.

Liara walked up to the turian and kissed him on the cheek. Javik scoffed, mating between species a futile exercise. "Looks like we are off the clock, Li…how about we get something to eat?" Garrus said. "I know you need it considering how hard you've been working" Liara hesitated she knew Garrus was right, but…she looked back at Javik.

Javik went to the tub of water. "I've had enough questions asari…leave me" Liara nodded. Garrus wrapped his arm around Liara's shoulder and they both left the room. "At last silence…"

_**Shepherd's Room**_

"Son of a bitch, I hate wearing this…" Shepherd grumbled as he was getting dress, the Normandy was in the Annos Basin for the meeting with the Dalatrass. And part of that meet was being 'professional' which meant wearing his stuffy, uncomfortable Alliance uniform. Tali giggled and fixed his collar.

"Well you can't exactly meet with the Dalatrass in a muscle shirt and a hoodie" She said. "Besides, you look handsome, if it wasn't for the fact that this was a diplomatic incident, I would jump you and fuck you right now"

Shepherd chuckled a little. "Why, Miss vas Normandy, what a dirty mouth you have for such a lady" he said in mock outrage. Tali wrapped her arms around Shepherd's neck.

"Well, you know that human saying about girls and bad boys…." Tali said in sultry voice. Shepherd grabbed her by the waist and kissed her lips. They then looked in each other's eyes; it had been a long time since they could just enjoy a quiet moment to themselves since the war began. The PA then came on, and interrupted their moment.

"Commander, the salarian dalatrass and krogan clan chief and are ready to come on board" Traynor said.

Shepherd sighed. "Of course…" he muttered. "Have them brought to the conference room"

"You should go; you know how impatient Wrex can be…" Tali said. Shepherd kissed her cheek.

"Wish me luck…" Shepherd said walking out of the room.

Tali smiled. "Luck"

_**Conference Room**_

He made his way to the conference room, and could hear yelling. Shepherd came in and saw Wrex and the Dalatrass arguing. He met Victus, where he was scratching his head in frustration, he had been trying to play peacekeeper and failed. Shepherd could tell the Primarch was at the end of his rope; at this point he would rather fight the reapers than deal with politics. "How long?"

Victus sighed. "It hasn't been five minutes, and they're already at each other's throats"

Shepherd pinched the bridge of his nose. "Let's get this started" For two hours straight it had been a shouting match between Wrex and the Dalatrass, which mostly consisted of the two calling each other's names. Politics was a pain in the ass, it was no wonder Anderson was happy to be done with the council, and he wanted to be done with this himself. Shepherd had enough and whistled to get their attention. "Hey, we ain't getting anywhere!"

The Dalatrass pointed at Wrex accusingly. "The krogan is in no position to make demands!"

Wrex growled. "This krogan has a name, its Urdnot Wrex, I suggest you remember that!" he said. "And my people are not just some junkyard varren you unleash whenever you're in trouble" Wrex looked at Victus. "Besides, I got my own problems, reaper scouts have arrived on Tuchunka" Wrex said. "Why should I care, if a few turians go extinct?"

Victus frowned. "Trying to draw out negotiations will get you nowhere. I have no time for it, what do you want?"

Wrex crossed his arms. "You already know...a cure for the genophage…"

The dalatrass eyes went wide. "Absolutely not! The genophage is non-negotiable!"

"Well, that was quick…exactly what are you afraid of, dalatrass?" Shepherd asked.

"We uplifted the Krogan, we know them best"

"You mean you used us! And then tossed us aside when we were no longer useful!" Wrex said. "It wasn't the asari, the salarians, or the turians that stopped the rachni; it was krogan, our blood!"

The salarian slammed her fist on the table. "And after that, you sought to take over the galaxy in the rebellions!" Linron said. "The genophage was the only way to keep your…'urges' in check" Wrex gave a feral growl and Linnron glared back, Shepherd was impressed with the Dalatrass, most wouldn't think to insult a krogan. After all krogan, even one as patient as Wrex had short tempers, though she was probably confident from the fact if Wrex attacked her then the Salarians would be all over the Krogan like a bad plague.

Victus sighed. "Dalatrass, you may not like him, but he's right. Insulting him won't change that."

"I won't apologize for speaking the truth!" she said angrily. "We uplifted the krogan to do one thing, to stop the rachni"

"After your people opened the relay that allowed the rachni to come through" Shepherd said. "You should have thought things through"

Linron scoffed and looked at Shepherd. "Like the humans did, when they opened uncharted relays?"

Shepherd frowned. "That's not fair and you know it, my people didn't even know aliens existed before the First Contact War" he said. Shepherd stopped himself before he said something he was going to regret. "But that's beside the point, I've fought with Wrex and I've seen first-hand how much more they are than just their violent nature, they deserve a cure"

Wrex nodded. "One thousand, four hundred and seventy-six years, that's how long my people lived with your damn plague!"

"It was a thousand years of peace free from you brutes!" The Dalatrass yelled.

"Enough! It doesn't matter if the krogan deserve it or not, it would take years to create a cure" Victus said. "Years we don't have…"

Wrex smirked. "That's where you're wrong" The others looked at him as he went to the terminal. "A salarian scientist, Maleon grew a conscience; he was on my planet testing a cure on our females"

"I remember him, his methods were brutal" Shepherd said.

"But what you didn't know, it that the other females survived his experiment" Wrex said pressing a button. A new screen showed the inside of a salarian base, the camera was moving to a container with a krogan. Due to how dark it was they couldn't make out the features of the krogan.

"So the dalatrass sent a team to clean up the mess and to take them prisoner"

The Dalatrass eyes went wide. "Where did you get this?! It could be a fabrication" Shepherd shook his head, no way that was a fake…an STG base is one of the most secure places in the galaxy only salarians were allowed. A Salarian tipped Wrex off, the question was who. Linron was nervous now, with that footage shown her argument was weakening.

"Don't insult me! Those are my people, and they're immune to your genophage, you will give them back!" Wrex growled.

"Dalatrass, is this true?" Victus asked.

"H-how would curing the genophage help my people? They could just retaliate against us!"

Shepherd crossed his arms. "I think you're underestimating our krogan friend here, besides how long do you think you'll last against the reapers? Because if you don't help, that is exactly how it will end up"

"And I'll be the last friendly turian you'll ever see"

The dalatrass hesitated for a moment. "They're being kept in one of our STG bases on Sur'Kesh" she said. Shepherd and Wrex started to walk out the room. "But I warn you, the consequences will be felt for centuries to come"

Shepherd frowned and faced her. "Centuries will be nothing if the reapers win, stay out of our way…" he warned coldly.

"Let's get the females" Wrex said. Shepherd nodded.

"You're not setting foot on Sur'Kesh, krogan!" she said. "This will take time…"

"This happens now, as spectre Shepherd can oversee the exchange" Victus said.

"We're going; you can stay here and pout for all I care…." Shepherd, Victus, and Wrex walked out of the room.

Linron frowned. "I won't forget this, Commander! A bully has few friends went he needs them most!"

_The salarian homeworld has been likened to the jungles of Earth: pretty to look at, teeming with life, uncomfortable to live in and dangerous to the unwary. The technophilic salarians had significant pollution and waste problems early in the development of their society. They also embraced social solutions just as quickly, and through complex breeding rules, Sur'Kesh now maintains a crowded but sustainable population. The planet tends to be wetter than Earth, and salarian cities spare no expense to collect and provide fresh water, as one might expect from an amphibious species._

_Due to Sur'Kesh's location in the galaxy, far from dark space, it has yet to be invaded by the Reapers. But its rulers are all too aware that they are in the path of attack. Because they could not strike the first blow, as their military doctrine suggests, many already consider their forces at a severe disadvantage.-Codex_

The shuttle was flying towards the Salarian base, to get the krogan females. According to the file, the Dalatrass reluctantly forwarded the base was the most secured on the Sur'kesh. It was also the base where the Genophage was developed and later modified, the base currently held in total seven krogan females. Even though they had permission, Shepherd was still worried he didn't know how the STG would take a krogan walking free on their planet. Not only that, he didn't know how Wrex would act on he got on the base…if they weren't careful this could cause a shitstorm of epic proportion. "This is the salarian homeworld, so let's try to keep it simple" Shepherd said. "We get in, get the females, and get out, no harm, no foul"

Wrex snorted. "I still don't trust them…"

"Usually I would say scare them, but we have enough headaches as it is…" he said. "Just be friendly, Wrex, you'll get what you want"

"These females are the best and probably last hope for my people…"

"You do not have to worry, Mr. Wrex, it would not make sense for them to betray us" EDI said. "They have as much to lose as you do"

The krogan blinked. "Uh, Shepherd I may be a little rusty when it comes to the crew, but who is this?" Wrex asked.

"This is EDI, the Normandy's AI, as for the body, it's a_ loooong _story…." Tali said.

"Damn, Shepherd, you have the weirdest taste in squadmates"

Shepherd raised a brow. "Like the Hamlet watching krogan should talk…" Cortez spoke up.

"Commander, I have the salarian base on sensors" he said.

"So far so good, set her down" Shepherd said. Sur'kesh was a beautiful place; surrounded by lush green forests it was very reminiscent of the rain forests of South America, Africa, and Asia back on Earth. When the reapers land on Sur'Kesh, all of that beauty will become wasteland soon…just like Earth. In the middle was the STG base, the spectre wouldn't thought of putting it in the middle of a forest, but that was genius of it, the thick vegetation made it hard to be seen in case of an invasion. The shuttle came close to the base and was about to land.

"Commander, salarian ground control won't let me land" Cortez said. "Says we don't have clearance" Tali looked at Shepherd.

"What was that about so far so good?" Tali asked.

Shepherd shook his head. "Tell them that the dalatrass authorized this herself"

"I knew they wouldn't keep their word" Wrex said opening the hatch. "Let's see them stop a Krogan air drop"

"Oh shit, Wrex, don't!" Shepherd said. Wrex jumped from the shuttle and was met with two salarians. The salarians had their omni-tools out ready to fry Wrex if he so much as sneeze, they haven't even touched ground yet and everything was starting to go to hell. "Land this bird, now!"

"On it, Commander" The shuttle landed, but not before Wrex bioticlly tossed the salarians like rag-dolls against the wall. He got his shotgun out ready to cause mayhem on the base, he stopped however when dozens of red dots was on his chest and head. On the roof of the base were snipers ready to pull the trigger and on the ground they were joined by even more STG operatives. Shepherd and the team went to meet with Wrex, and hopefully to contain the situation however that just agitated the situation.

"Halt!" The tension was broken when someone spoke up.

"Stand down! Hold your fire!" A grey salarian in dark grey armor walked out in the middle. "Commander Shepherd restrain your colleague! We only found out about this transfer a few moments ago!"

"Does salarian hospitality always start with sharpshooters?" Tali asked with crossed arms.

"Please understand, we have to take precaution, Krogan are still considered a hostile race"

Wrex snorted. "I wonder why"

"However, on the behalf of the Salarian Union, I apologize"

"Well, that's a good a start…" Shepherd said.

"But we must insist the krogan remain under guard"

"Like hell!" Wrex growled.

"It may be wise to do so, Mr. Wrex, any act of hostility could jeopardize the peaceful exchange" EDI said calmly.

"She's right, Wrex, don't worry we'll handle this" Shepherd said.

Wrex grunted and put away his shotgun. "Fine, but anything goes wrong and all bets are off" He went with the salarian guards. The shuttle landed and the STG members went on with their businesses, they avoided a political shitstorm…for now.

"If you please, this way…" the salarian said. The spectre nodded and the team walked with the salarian.

Shepherd sighed. "That could have gone better…"

"Yeah, as long as nothing else goes wrong, we should be fine" Tali said.

Shepherd groaned. "Please don't jinx us…"


	14. Chapter 11b: Sur'Kesh pt2

**Chapter 11b: Sur'Kesh pt2**

Wrex grunted and put away his shotgun. "Fine, but anything goes wrong and all bets are off" He went with the salarian guards. The shuttle landed and the STG members went on with their businesses, they avoided a political shitstorm…for now.

"If you please, this way…" the salarian said. The spectre nodded and the team walked with the salarian. "I'm Padok Wiks, again I'm sorry for the misunderstanding Commander everyone is on edge with the war…" The team could hear the sound of machinery and saw container holding a…Yaag. "Careful with that container!"

"That thing again…" Tali said grimly. The quarian still remembered when the Shadow Broker knocked her and Garrus out back on Hagalaz. She really hoped the salarians weren't stupid enough to uplift another race of hyper-violent giants, but she's learned to never underestimate the impulsiveness of salarians.

"As you can see, this base contains classified information…" Wiks said.

Shepherd crossed his arms. "Like the krogan females?" he asked.

"The females were in poor health when we found them, contrary to what your krogan friend thinks we were trying to help them" Wiks said.

"Yes, and I'm sure this has nothing to do with them being immune to the Genophage…" Tali said dryly.

"Ah…well there's that too…" Wiks said. "You can see the females, but I'll need to get you cleared first, if you'll excuse me…" While waiting for clearance, Shepherd took the time to talk to an old friend. Wrex was in the corner as calm as he could be, however his salarian guards was a bundle of nerves. Shepherd looked behind him, and two snipers were on the ledge watching Wrex, extra precautions to ensure the scene from earlier did not happen again.

Tali shook her head. "Keelah, talk about overkill…" she said.

"Considering their history, it is not surprising the salarians would take extra precautions" EDI stated. The team approached Wrex.

"How long do I have to wait? This planet smells wrong" Wrex complained.

The spectre shook his head. "The angry krogan act never fails, I see" Shepherd said dryly.

"Good old fashion krogan hot air, they're lucky, if I was really pissed, they'd be dead already" Wrex said. The krogan gave a toothy grin; the salarian guards flinched and tightened his grip on the gun. Wrex was having too much fun trolling the salarian guards, Shepherd just hoped he didn't go too far with the jokes the guards were looking a little trigger happy.

"Wrex…"

"Don't worry, I'm just having fun with them" he said. "So I have the feeling you want to ask me something?"

"Yeah, I did, the STG is one of the most secretive organizations outside of the spectres, who tipped you off?" Shepherd asked.

"Sorry Shepherd, I would tell you, but the damn pijacks have ears everywhere" he said. He then grinned. "I like my salarian liver raw…" The salarian guards frowned.

"So what do you know about these females?"

"They weren't fertile, so we used them as decoys to draw off enemies from the ones who were"

"Keelah, that's horrible!" Tali gasped.

"Yeah, that's pretty harsh, Wrex" Shepherd said.

"But necessary, a krogan clan's power depends on the number fertile females" EDI explained. "Also due to their culture, a female unable to give birth would feel useless, making themselves decoys would make them feel like they are contributing to the continuation of their clan"

"She's right on…but Maleon's experiment changed that, and these damn pijacks stole them from us" Wrex said. "Once the females are back with us, it'll be better for all of us" Shepherd nodded, the krogan people were lucky to have Wrex as their leader, he was very sure his friend can put them on the right path. However the salarians looked nervous, after all a cured population of krogan meant a chance for retaliation, but Shepherd was sure Wrex wouldn't do that.

"And the reapers? You said they were sighted on Tuchanka?"

"Clans Jorgal and Ravanor sighted some landing parties and wiped them out before they could try something, but they will be back" Wrex said. "The reapers are up to something, what? I don't know"

"Are you guys ready? I mean they are unlike anything you've faced before" Tali said.

Wrex smirked. "Tuchanka might be a pile of rubble, but it's ours and I'll be damned if we lose it to the reapers" he said. "Ever since Sovereign, I knew this day would come, the days of selling ourselves as mercs is done"

"It's time to go back to what we do best, killing giant monsters"

"Great, the rachni war stories again…you are never going let us forget that are you?" Shepherd asked.

"Damn right, the statue at the Citadel isn't just there to look pretty" the krogan said with a smirk. Wiks came up to the team.

"Commander, you are cleared, you can now check on the female" Shepherd nodded.

"Well, duty calls, good speaking to you, Wrex"

"It'll be even better when we have a few salarians for lunch" he said with a devilish grin. The team walked to the elevator, Wiks looked at Shepherd.

"Um, he was kidding about that, right?"

"Don't know, you might have to be extra nice to him, just in case…"

The salarian flinched. "R-right…" he said nervously. "Now, just proceed to the elevator and…." The sirens started to sound.

"Alert! Threat conditions two has been declared. Scramble readiness teams" All of the salarians were scrambling into position, gunships were taking off. Wiks opened his omni-tool.

Shepherd frowned. "What's happening?"

"Sensors have picked up activity in the perimeter"

"Keelah, the reapers?" Tali asked.

The salarian shook his head. "Don't know, you might want to hurry" he said. "Someone will meet you below" The team went down the elevator, when they got down they were in a dark lab full of other specimens, the salarians were scrambling trying to save any data they can.

"Base personal must remain on-site until further notice" the PA said.

"How are the specimens?" a salarian said.

"All accounted for, sir"

"Good, back up the other squads" The soldier saluted and the salarian talking to him turned around to reveal an old friend. Mordin Solus, a former crewmember that help him stop the Collectors. The salarian held out his hand. "Shepherd! Excellent timing. Good to see you"

"Mordin?" Shepherd asked shaking his hand.

"Eyesight still sharp. Surprise understandable, hadn't expected to return to work" Mordin said. Tali and Shepherd looked at each other, when Mordin left they thought he went back to Omega and his clinic. Looks like they were way off on this one.

"You're back with the STG?" Tali asked.

"Had to be me, someone else might have gotten it wrong" Mordin then looked around for any others listening and came in close. "Helped female krogan, been helping Clan Urdnot for months, encouraged political pressure to free females"

"You're the inside source? Huh, no wonder Wrex kept it close"

"Yes, very close to government, it made me an asset and a liability" he said. "The rest I can explain later, the warnings not normal, need to get for the sake of krogan."

"Excuse me, Dr. Solus, but the data said seven krogan females, not just one" EDI said.

Mordin came close to EDI and examined her, tilting his head he then nodded. "Ah, EDI, sorry almost didn't recognize you" he said. "You're correct, however…"

"However?"

Mordin took a deep breath. "It might be better, if I show you…"

He led the team to a dark room. "My god..." Shepherd said in horror. Inside was six large bodies covered up. Tali gasped and looked away, EDI didn't have any reaction, and Shepherd looked sick.

"Females had weakened immune system, side effect of Maleon's cure" he said. "They didn't survive…" When Shepherd asked about Maleon's data, Mordin explained his former assistant's data was incomplete. It lacked crucial details to create a cure, Shepherd frowned, no cure meant no alliance between the turians and the krogan and that didn't bode well for Earth. However Mordin gave them hope, when he said he could make it from living tissue. Mordin then sighed and looked at the bodies. "Couldn't save them"

Tali put her hand on his shoulder. "You did your best…"

"Arrived too late. Cannot delay now" he said. "One survivor, immune to genophage. Can synthesize cure from her tissue"

"She's still here?"

"Yes, last hope for Krogan, but if she dies, genophage cure…problematic…" They walked to a sole containment unit. Inside was a krogan in what looked like a holding pod. "Please be careful, krogan slow to trust"

Shepherd nodded. "I'm Commander Shepherd, Alliance Navy" A deep, but feminine voice spoke up. She narrowed her eyes at the spectre, expecting an enemy.

"Are you here to kill me?" Tali did a scan of the female krogan, her eyes went wide when she saw what Maleon's experiments had done to her.

"Oh, Keelah…How could anyone do this on another person…?"

"Urdnot Wrex and I are here to take you home"

"Why? What am I to you?" the krogan asked.

"Why so worried? Have the salarians have been mistreating you?" Shepherd asked.

"Those were my sisters back there; they died in a lot of pain"

"Did the best we could…" Mordin said.

"And now I'm the last one, that makes me dangerous to a lot of people" She said. "So again, what am I to you?"

"You're the future of the Krogan people, I'm fighting for that" There was another rumble, this time it was closer. Whatever was causing it was giving the salarians a run for their money, it wasn't the reapers it was much too subdued. Whatever the case they needed to get her out and quickly, the salarians scrambled, some were staying to keep the data safe others grabbed their guns and went outside to give them time.

"Then I hope you brought an army"

"Alert! Unidentified vessels have breached the perimeter"

"Give me an update!"

"Outbound communication has been severed! We're cut off!"

"Secure all data offsite!" A salarian came to the krogan's tank.

"What happening?" Shepherd asked.

"We have multiple ships inbound!" Shepherd's com beeped.

"Shepherd, it's Wrex, Cerberus troops are attacking the base!"

Shepherd frowned. "Cerberus? Why are they here?"

"Don't know, don't care. We need to get the females out now!"

"You mean female, there's only one left…" Shepherd said. "It might safer…"

"No way, those pijacks did enough damage! You want an alliance you get that female out" The comm closed.

"Get the female, we're leaving"

"I can't protocol states…" The salarian got a nasty shock from none other than Mordin.

"Objection noted and denied, now please the release the krogan"

"Y-yes, yes sir" The pod opened and Mordin stepped inside.

"I'll need to monitor the pod as it clears procedures" he said. "Meet us at next checkpoint, likely Cerberus opposes genophage cure"

Shepherd nodded and looked at the female Krogan. "You'll get home soon, I promise"

"Hurry Shepherd!" Mordin said. He nodded and the team went to the elevator, when opened the door, they were met with a device.

"Explosive device!" EDI said.

"Shit, get back!" The device went off sending the team back hard. "Everyone all right?"

"I'm okay, Wayne…"

"No external damage"

Shepherd looked to the guards. "Is there another way out?"

"Other side of the lab, an emergency exit" Shepherd nodded.

"What the hell happened down there, Shepherd?" Wrex asked.

"Going to have to take a detour, Cerberus booby trapped the elevator" Shepherd said.

"Get out of there Shepherd, I'll try to be a pain to Cerberus" the comm closed. When the team got to the upper levels, it had turned into a warzone. The salarians were losing people left and right but were slowing them down. At the side of the lab was a Cerberus shuttle and then a smoke grenade rolled near the salarian guards. Then multiple gunshots rang out and the soldiers fell with a thud. Shepherd and his team went to cover as Cerberus troopers took cover in the far lab up ahead.

"Here they come, EDI ready to test out the new body?"

"Affirmative!"

Shepherd trapped them in a stasis bubble as they landed. Tali sent out her combat drone to distract the troopers, while the EDI burned them with incinerate. Shepherd finished it with a warp field to the troopers in the stasis field, causing an explosion. However that was not the end of it as another shuttle came in, one of the troopers threw a grenade and them scattered before it exploded. Chatika went after the troopers blasting them with its rockets while EDI overloaded the Centurion's shields. Shepherd went in and blasted them with his Venom shotgun while Tali back him up by sabotaging the trooper's guns. When they were all dead, the team went deeper into the base.


	15. Chapter 11c: Sur'Kesh pt3

**Chapter 11c: Sur'Kesh pt3**

_**The Kodiak**_

Cortez was in his safety harness as the shuttle rocked from a combination of fire from Cerberus gunships and the reckless driving of the krogan that just commandeered the shuttle. When Cerberus attacked the STG base, Wrex took advantage of the confusion to get to the shuttle, he then forced him out the pilot seat…his seat to play a game of cat and mice with the human organization. Cortez at first wanted to object, but the krogan was like an eight-hundred pound Commander Shepherd…you don't object, you just nod your head and hope he doesn't get you killed. The shuttle rocked again this time from gunfire…the shuttle pilot was knocked forward only to be held back by the harness.

Cortez groaned. "Where did you learn to drive?"

"Heh…Shepherd back in the Mako days…" Cortez paled when he heard that, almost all the new members heard about the legendary bad driving of Commander Shepherd. Some of the stories he's heard would be hard to believe if it wasn't for the ground crew confirming it, like the time Shepherd drove through an army of geth firing at him to get to the conduit on Ilos with only reinforced shields and no weapons. Cortez snapped to reality when he saw an extremely tight corner up ahead. "Hold on, human!" Cortez was pushed back into his seat.

"Are you crazy?! The Kodiak can't make tight corners like that!" he said. "We'll crash!"

"Then let's see what it can do then!" Wrex made a right turn so sharp that the side of the Kodiak scraped against the STG building. It wasn't pretest of turns, but they were able to make it to the astonishment of Cortez. That was more than could be said about two Cerberus gunships that pursued them, as the crashed against the wall in a fiery blaze. Wrex gave a hardy laugh. "So much for those pyjaks!"

The radar beeped. "I hate to put a damper on your celebrations but we got three Cerberus shuttles coming our way…"

Wrex smirked. "Well then let's not disappoint them"

Cortez's left eye twitched. "Oh god, we are going to die…" he said grimly.

_**STG Base**_

Shepherd trapped them in a stasis bubble as they landed. Tali sent out her combat drone to distract the troopers, while the EDI burned them with incinerate. Shepherd finished it with a warp field to the troopers in the stasis field, causing an explosion. However that was not the end of it as another shuttle came in, one of the troopers threw a grenade and them scattered before it exploded. Chatika went after the troopers blasting them with its rockets while EDI overloaded the Centurion's shields. Shepherd went in and blasted them with his Venom shotgun while Tali back him up by sabotaging the trooper's guns. When they were all dead, the team went into the next room where another wave of Cerberus troopers was waiting for them.

The Centurion obscured their sight with their smoke grenades. Tali summoned her drone into the smoke, while EDI burned the trooper next to the Centurion. Out of the smoke came two guardians firing at them while the troopers threw grenades at them, the team scattered taking cover in the labs. Shepherd separated them from their shields, while EDI and Tali gunned them down with their pistols. "Push 'em back!" Shepherd ordered. Tali's drone shocked the enemies while Tali herself was dealt with the approaching enemy with her shotgun. EDI used her decoy to further confuse the enemy, while she gunned them down with her SMG. When there one enemy left, a huge explosion came from the side wall was smashed opened.

"What the hell?!" The trooper said. Out of the hole was one of the captured Yaags, the team watched as the giant creature tossed the trooper across the room. The soldier's neck went snap when he hit the wall hard. The Yaag looked at them, the team held up their weapons expecting a fight, but it just roared at them and ran away.

"Okay…not how I expected to end a fight, but I'll take it" Shepherd said.

"Um, should we be worried that a future Shadow Broker is running loose?" Tali asked. The com opened, the sound of gunfire could be heard in the background.

"Shepherd, need assistance, Cerberus attacking tank!" Mordin said.

"On our way, Mordin" The team jumped across the ledge and headed for the first checkpoint. When they got there, Cerberus was shooting the tank while Mordin was trying to process the female.

"Keelah, the female won't last for long, Wayne" Tali said.

Shepherd nodded. "Agreed, get them away from the tank" EDI spoke up.

"Shepherd, Cerberus Shuttle incoming" she said.

"Got it, help Tali with the female, I got this." Shepherd said. As the shuttle approached, Shepherd pulled the trigger of his Hydra, and saw the shuttle go down in a fiery blaze into Sur'Kesh's jungle. Meanwhile, Tali sabotaged the trooper's guns causing them to backfire on them, EDI then burned the enemy, causing the gun to overload from the heat and causing the gun to explode taking with him his allies. The Centurions flanked them and took them by surprise, they lowered their shields. Tali and EDI changed cover; EDI used her decoy to confuse the centurions while Tali came in close to blast them with her plasma shotgun to end the battle.

"Shepherd, technician dead, need you to clear us to next checkpoint" Shepherd went to the terminal.

"How is she?" Shepherd asked.

"Containment shields are holding, will try to repair, can't say for krogan's health, however" Mordin said.

"I'm fine, Commander"

"How did Cerberus know about the female?" Tali asked.

"Don't know…females kept secret, possible mole in STG. Could be indoctrinated" he said. "No krogan alliance with turians means reapers unchallenged…problematic"

"It would make sense, considering Cerberus wants to control the reapers…" EDI said.

"We'll do more than challenge them, Mordin; I'm in no mood for their bullshit" The console beeped and the tank moved to the next level.

"Shepherd meet us at next checkpoint, Cerberus likely to target…" The back of Mordin's pod was smashed apart. Mordin stayed down as Cerberus troopers opened fired on the inside of his pod.

"Mordin!"

"I'm alright, hurry to next checkpoint!" The pod left the firing zone of the troopers, leaving the team to deal with Cerberus. The troopers fired on them, and they took cover behind the console.

"EDI draw their fire!" The AI nodded and created a hologram image, while Tali summoned her drone behind the troopers, she overloaded the drone's programing causing it to explode inside the shuttle sending it crashing down. "Let's go" They went out the hole Cerberus had left, the com opened.

"Shepherd get moving, the salarians are losing ground" Wrex said. They saw their shuttle being pursued by a Cerberus gunship.

"We'll try taking down their shuttles, making it easier for you" Cortez said. Shepherd and team went to the salarian team who were fending off an attack from Cerberus. Tali summoned Chatika to distract the Centurions while Shepherd, EDI, and the STG gunned down the rest of the soldiers. Shepherd's com opened.

"Shepherd, last attack damaged security systems! Attempting to compensate!"

"Hang on, we're heading to your location now" They went to the upper floors where more STG were fighting Cerberus. A gas grenade was set off obscuring their vision, and they were picked off rapidly by gunfire. When the smoke was cleared, it revealed an Engineer and his turret. The turret targeted the team and fired on them, putting them back into cover.

"I got this!" Tali said as she raised her arm. The turret then turned around and fired at its owner.

"Nice one, rookie" While the turrets was keeping them occupied, Shepherd took out his hydra and fired on the troopers. The multiple missiles rained down on the troopers, first taking out the engineer, then his turret and then the rest of their squad. The team went into the next room, where they saw a varren attack a trooper, only to be gunned down by his friends. The Centurions threw smoke grenades and the troopers opened fired, the squad took cover. Shepherd saw the stairs, and ran towards it. "Heading up top to flank them!" When the spectre made it up top, he found Cerberus had the same plans and came up by jet boots. Shepherd used his throw field to knock them below, a Centurion and trooper made it up above. Shepherd got out his shotgun and blasted team when they landed.

"Wayne! We need help down here, we're pinned!" Tali said. Shepherd went to the ledge and saw the troopers pinning down Tali and EDI while the guardians were getting close to them. Shepherd dropped a lift grenade behind the approaching guardians and sent them flying, that caught the troopers attention as half of them broke off to deal with the spectre. That was a mistake as EDI and Tali had breathing room to take out the three below, while Shepherd froze the three above and shattered them against the wall. Shepherd's com opened.

"Elevator's malfunctioning, need assistance Shepherd" Mordin said. Tali and EDI rejoined the spectre and they went into the next room. The troopers were swarming the tank.

"Take them out! Get them away from the females!" Shepherd said. Shepherd took control of the troopers and they fired on each other. Tali summoned her drone and defensive drone as EDI blasted the canisters near the troopers.

"No more enemies, Wayne!" Tali said. Shepherd nodded and went to the terminal. As he typed in the code, the power suddenly went out.

"What the hell?"

"Cerberus must have cut power, will need to turn back to continue" Tali and EDI went to the back and turned on the power, allowing Shepherd to clear the checkpoint. "Ah, good, just one more level" They then heard the sounds of troopers approaching.

"Rookie, drone at the entrance, EDI fake them out!" Tali summoned her drone and EDI summoned her decoy, as the troopers were preoccupied, Shepherd was able to clear the checkpoint. As the pod was moving, Shepherd went to help Tali and EDI; once he got there he found that they had taken care of the soldiers.

"What took you so long?" Tali asked with a smirk.

"Damn and I was going to do my shining prince routine too..." Shepherd said in mock offence

Tali giggled. "Maybe next time" Shepherd's com opened.

"How's the female?" Wrex asked.

"At the pick-up area, we're almost done"

"Heh, you pull this off, and I'm making you an honorary krogan"

"You mean, I wasn't already…?"

Wrex chuckled. "Good point" The team went upstairs, and saw the female in the middle of being released. They took their positions, waiting for another Cerberus attack. After ten minutes had past Tali took notice of Shepherd, he was restless.

"Something wrong Wayne?"

Shepherd frowned. "Something doesn't feel right; it's not like Cerberus to just give up…"

"I agree Shepherd, we must be on guard"

"Shepherd heads up, you've got company" Wrex said. The team was on their guard as something big landed, it was an Atlas mech, and they went to cover as it became active.

"Mordin, the female?" Shepherd asked.

"Can't release her until mech is dealt with"

"Got it, you heard the man! Waste the mech!" The Atlas mechs slowly approached, firing on the containment field. Tali summoned her drone to distract the mech. While it was preoccupied Shepherd and EDI drained its shields, when Chatika was no more it went back to shooting the containment. Shepherd came in close with is Venom and aimed for the cockpit as the AI burned its armor, until the cockpit cracked and shattered, leaving the pilot exposed. Shepherd killed pilot with a bullet to the head.

"More coming your way!" Shepherd threw his Hydra to Tali as he went to the mech.

"Rookie, we're on clean-up duty, EDI any Cerberus bastards that land take them out!" They nodded. "Let's do this" Shepherd pulled the dead trooper out of the mech, and went inside. As the shuttle tried to land, Shepherd and Tali would shoot them down, as EDI killed the stragglers. Eventually the troopers stopped coming. The shuttle landed and Wrex and Cortez got off. Wrex walked towards Shepherd and gave a hard pat against his back, almost causing him to fall.

"Nice work, you had me worried for a minute there" Wrex said.

"No problem, it's always fun to take down some Cerberus pricks" Shepherd said. "Cortez, call the Normandy, I'm going to bring this heavy mech with us"

"Yes sir" Mordin released the female and held out his hand. Wrex simply pushed the salarian out the way.

Wrex held out his hand. "Let's get you out of there" The female walked out, she was smaller than Wrex, but still towered over the non-krogan members. She wore a black and yellow robe with a veil that covered most of her face

"There they are!" Cerberus troopers came in.

"Shit, I thought took care of them…" Shepherd said. The team got ready to fight, but in three shots the troopers were dead, the team blinked until they heard a sound of a gun clicking. They looked back to see the female with Wrex's shotgun, she then gave back Wrex's shotgun rather forcefully.

"I can take care of myself, Wrex" She walked away to the Shuttle.

"Well, I'll be damned…"

Wrex shook his head. "Women…" Tali giggled.

_**The Normandy**_

The team made it back to the Normandy, Shepherd had called ahead to make the med-bay ready for the female's arrival. Shepherd went to the war room to give his report to Admiral Hackett. "Shepherd, good work on capturing a Cerberus mech, our engineers are mass-producing them and handing them out to soldiers on the war front" That was not all he brought back to Alliance, Shepherd had also gave them the reaper gun hoping they reverse-engineer it to give out to soldiers on the field, though he had reservations on giving reaper tech to them. Even if said tech could give their soldiers an edge…

"Any luck on reproducing the reaper gun that I found on Menae…?"

"Yes, thanks to you we now have a weapon that will help us on the ground front"

"Any problems of indoctrination? It is reaper tech…"

"No, our scientists did several tests on it, the Black star as they called it, does not indoctrinate"

Shepherd sighed in relief. "Good"

"Commander, I'm also hearing chatter you're brokering a treaty between the krogan and the turians?"

"Yes sir, if I get Krogan boots on Palaven, then the turians will help us"

"And how did Cerberus get involved?"

Shepherd frowned. "Don't know, TIM is up to something"

"Then keep them at bay, we need this treaty…"

"Understood, how the prothean device coming along?"

"Alliance R&D has begun construction, they've called it Project Crucible" Hackett said. "We're throwing everybody who know how to hold a hammer at it"

"This will be the most ambitious undertaking in human history"

"Will we get it done?"

"I'm not saying it won't be a challenge…" he said. "The designs are complex, and yet simple"

"We can do this, Shepherd. You can do this. Never doubt that"

Shepherd saluted. "No sir"

"Good, Hackett out" Shepherd came out of the com room, and saw the Crucible in full holographic display, the spectre smiled a little, for the first time since the war began he felt hope. Now he just had to hope their luck held out…

_**Decoris System**_

A lone shuttle was making its way to the planet Sanctum. Sanctum is known for the freezing ice storms which sweep across its poles and temperate zones, with only a thin strip of habitable land along the equator. Because of those harsh living conditions, Sanctum attracts only the most gruff and hardy, from miners to mercenaries to company men. Mining, referred to as "ice cracking" anywhere but the equator, is the backbone of Sanctum's economy. The planet is rich in platinum and palladium deposits, as well as boron, which is locally used in semiconductor doping. A couple of years ago, the planet was a haven for pirates and merc groups. The biggest group in charge was the Blue suns, using the barren wastes as a hideout to conduct their business, that was until the government decide to boot them off the planet with help of Cerberus…since then out of thanks for making planet safer the government based out of its capital Vulpes has allow them to build a base on their planet. In return, Cerberus has used their resources to finance the planet so they would not have to rely on deals from the pirates, however since Cerberus' attack on Mars, Eden Prime and Sur'Kesh has been known the planet is currently debating on cutting their relationship with the human organization.

A dark-colored man in dark purple heavy armor set the shuttle on auto pilot and went to the back. He had a scar from his nose to his right cheek, with a short beard. In the back, was a woman in red and black light armor, she had short black hair, she was sitting down with her leg bobbing up and down with nervousness. The man crouched down and placed a hand on her knee to calm her down. "We'll be there in thirty minutes, Miri" Jacob said.

Miranda sighed. "Right…" She got up and got her weapons ready, an Executioner pistol and Shuriken submachine gun.

"Are you sure about this, Miri? I mean going into the lion's den with just the two of us?" Jacob asked.

"Wherever my father is holding Orianna, Cerberus is likely to know" she said.

"You know, we could've…"

Miranda shook her head. "No, Shepherd has enough on his plate, without worrying about us" she said "we'll be fine"

Jacob sighed and got his Graal Spike Thrower and Predator heavy pistol ready "I hope you're right…" he said. "We're here..." The shuttle landed in the Cerberus base and exited the shuttle. They went to the first terminal in the room right of them to open the door, and enter the lab. "So far so good…"

As they looked around the lab, couldn't help but feel creeped out by all the reaper artifacts Cerberus has taken in. The organization now was a far-cry from the one Miranda had proudly served for years, instead of uplifting humanity and being its savior, they became humanities enemy. It was almost sad for the ex-operative.

Miranda shook her head. "The Illusive Man has fallen…" she said. "A terminal, Jacob cover me" Jacob nodded and cover her back as she looked through her files.

"Hey what do you think you're doing?!" One of the troopers said.

"Miri!"

"Keep them out, I'm almost done!" Jacob nodded and glowed blue and charged at trooper causing him to fly. The alarms sounded.

"Alert! Intruder alert! All squads search and eliminate"

"I got it!" Miranda said. The duo ran, with Cerberus troopers close behind.

_**Yes, you read that right, Jacob is a Vanguard. Miranda and Jacob are in trouble, will they escape?**_

_**Review and Comment **_


	16. Chapter 12: Cerberus Lab Pt1

**Chapter 12: Cerberus Lab pt1**

_**The Normandy  
**_Kaiden was in the cargo hold working out, with the reapers out there he had to be ready for anything. Sure he wasn't going to turn into a weight junkie like Vega, but he was going to improve himself, especially in this war. The door to the cargo bay opened and out stepped Cortez. Since all the craziness with the reapers started, there wasn't any time to get to know the new crew. Kaiden was usually the first to that, since Shepherd was pretty slow to trust new people. Just the other day he had a nice talk with their communications specialist; Samantha Traynor. Cortez came to his station.

"Oh Major, I'm sorry I didn't think anyone was here, I can leave if you want" he said.

Kaiden got off the floor and wiped himself down. "No, its fine Cortez, I was just finishing up" he said. "And it's Kaiden, I'm like Wayne, I'm not big on formalities"

Cortez sat on the console. "Wayne? Oh the Commander, I take it you two close"

"Yeah, known each other since boot camp, I take it's the same with you and James"

Cortez chuckled. "We go way back, been friends since we were kids, used to call him Little Jimmy"

Kaiden laughed, hard to believe that the large human used to be called that now he had something against him for all the times James called him 'Slim'. Kaiden joined him at the console. "So tell me about yourself, with all the craziness, I never got the chance to get to know some of the crew"

"Okay, I was born on Earth, been military for ten years, mostly pilot duty for the first fleet, got a bit of a reputation"

Kaiden raised a brow. "Oh what kind?"

Cortez rubbed his head sheepishly. "As kind of an ace, I don't really talk about it, it's not that big of a deal…"

"Hmm modest, Joker can learn something from you"

"With all due respect, I've heard the stories about the shit he got you out of, trust me he can brag all he wants" he said.

Kaiden chuckled. "You haven't heard him brag" he said. "So any family?"

"My parents are in Arizona, life-long military, I'm worried about them" Cortez said. "I haven't heard from them since we escaped Earth…" Kaiden sighed; he knew how that felt, his parents were also stuck on Earth in Toronto. His father was military and probably joined Anderson to fight the reapers; Charlie Alenko was a tough old bastard who survived being imprisoned by the turian in First Contact so he would probably be okay. His mother, Ling Alenko, on the other hand was a different story, she wasn't military and he's seen firsthand how the reapers treated non-combatants. He shook his head, they were probably fine, and it's possible they made it to Anderson.

"You're a good-looking man, anyone special you got waiting for you when this mess is done?" Kaiden asked.

Cortez hesitated. "I…I had a husband, back on Ferris Fields…The collectors…took out the whole colony, I rather not talk about it…"

Kaiden lowered his head. "I'm sorry, didn't mean to pry…."

"No worries, it…took some time…but I'm fine…" The PA opened.

"Cortez, stand by in the Kodiak, Commander Shepherd preparing the ground team"

"Duty calls, it was nice talking to you, we should to do it again sometime" Kaiden said walking away.

Cortez smiled. "We should" As he saw Kaiden walking away, Cortez could help but notice his muscles, he blushed and shook away the thought. He got into the Shuttle.

_Sanctum is proof of the old spacer adage "just because it's called a garden world doesn't mean it's a picnic." Freezing ice storms cover the poles and temperate zones, leaving a narrow strip of habitable land at the equator. Dry but windy, this area is home to Sanctum's minimal terrestrial plant life. The planet has yet to develop land-based animals, though invertebrates grow quite large in its pelagic seas. Mining referred to as "ice cracking" at anywhere but the equator is a common employment on Sanctum. The planet is rich in platinum and palladium deposits as well as boron, which is locally used in semiconductor doping. __Sanctum's corporate factions have learned that Cerberus is involved in the planet's finances. Systems Alliance intelligence agents embedded within the corporate strata are quietly urging the companies to confront Cerberus directly, but so far, financial bickering has kept Sanctum's major stakeholders from acting against the Illusive Man._

TRAVEL ADVISORY: Carbon dioxide levels on Sanctum can reach 5,000 parts per million during thermal inversions. Travelers should carry a breath mask at all times and consult the Sanctum World Weather Service for warnings.

TRAVEL ADVISORY: Piracy is at a 14-year global high on Sanctum. Visitors should take appropriate security precautions._-Codex_

Shepherd and team were in the shuttle heading for their destination. Shepherd looked at the prothean. "You sure about this, Javik? You can rest more if you want…" Shepherd said. While Shepherd was preparing his team for the mission, Javik came to him saying he was fit for duty. However, Shepherd was worried how being frozen for fifty thousand years affected his combat effectiveness.

"No more rest, I stand ready to fight" Shepherd and Garrus didn't look convinced. "Your concern is not needed; the years in stasis have only made me hungrier to fight the reapers"

"Have to say boss, Javik could give Grunt a run for his money in the stubborn department" Garrus said.

Javik scoffed. "What you call stubbornness, I call purpose, don't forget that, turian" he said. "I'll be ready to fight, Commander" He closed his eyes.

"Huh, Li said he was, er… unpleasant…"

Shepherd shook his head. "Don't let it bother you…"

"Commander, I have Admiral Hackett on vid-com" Cortez said.

"Bring it up…" Hackett's image came up.

"Shepherd, we found a secret Cerberus lab. Function unknown" he said. "We sent in a recon team and found something very interesting…."

"What?"

"We're not the only one's interested in Cerberus, two people came in undetected and was snooping around their systems" he said. "One of the Cerberus troopers spotted them and it turned into a fire fight"

"Do you have an image of them?"

"Yes, bring it up now" An image of the two intruders, made Garrus and Shepherd's eyes grew wide, their appearances changed a little but they recognized them. The question was what were they doing here and why would they sneak into a Cerberus base alone? "I take it from your expressions, you know these people"

Shepherd nodded. "Miranda Lawson and Jacob Taylor, they were members of my crew when we fought the collectors, also ex-Cerberus operatives, one of which had the Illusive Man's ear"

Hackett rubbed his beard. "Hmm, interesting, well you've got two objectives now…" The admiral said. "Investigate that lab, we think they are warehousing and studying reaper tech, we've been wondering how they were connected to the reapers, this will give us answers"

"And the other is to bring in Ms. Lawson and Mr. Taylor, any info we can have on the Illusive Man will be useful" he said. "Find out what Cerberus is doing and get me any reaper tech samples you can, Commander. Hackett out" His image faded, Garrus looked at the spectre.

"What are Miranda and Jacob doing here?" Garrus asked.

Shepherd frowned, sneaking into base full of Cerberus troops hopped up on reaper tech was dangerously risky but the thing is they should know this. He shook his head, Jacob and Miranda weren't stupid they would have some kind of plan, especially Miranda. "Don't know" Cortez spoke up.

"Commander, Lawson and Taylor are in the middle of a firefight, one of them has been wounded"

Shepherd frowned. "Shit, set her down, Cortez!"

"Sir!"

_**Deep in the Cerberus Lab**_

Jacob was in the middle of battle with Cerberus troops, they had barricaded them in a large room in the back of the lab. The room's entrance and exit were the same, which meant they couldn't be flanked, but it also meant they had nowhere to go. Miranda was shot in the shoulder from a round from a turret and was losing blood fast which left Jacob to fight Cerberus and protect Miranda. Three Centurions threw smoke grenades in the room blinding them, Jacob was nervous now he couldn't see anything. He gripped his gun tightly as he heard footsteps approaching, then a shot rang out barely missing Jacob's head. He ducked and looked around the console and saw a silhouette of a Guardian trying to get close to them.

Jacob pulled the shield away, and blasted him with his Graal Spike Thrower the superheated spike struck the guardians abdomen and the soldier scream in pain as his insides burned. He then heard a trooper behind them; Jacob pulled him forcefully with his biotics. The trooper floated near the doorway, when the smoke cleared Jacob followed up his attack with a biotic charge, causing the trooper to fly. He struck the ground and caused a shockwave that threw them against the wall, he shot all four of them with his pistol twice in the head. He went to check on Miranda, she was losing consciousness; he needed to get her out here however the shuttle was too far away and it was likely Cerberus had destroyed it. Jacob checked his omni-tool, there was a room not too far from where they were and from the looks of it had a medi-gel dispenser; now it they could only get there before more troopers came. Jacob took Miranda's good arm and put it around his neck and helped her to her feet, holding her up right. They began to walk to the room listed in his omni-tool, but Miranda's legs started to buckle before Jacob held her up.

"Come on, baby, stay with me…" Jacob said concerned.

"Jacob, you've got to….run…please…" Miranda said weakly. "I'll only slow you down…"

Jacob shook his head. "Like hell I'm going to let my girlfriend die before seeing her little sister again" he said. "So, stay with me dammnit!"

Miranda chuckled weakly. "So stubborn…"

"Like you're one to talk" They heard some approaching footsteps. "Shit, not now…"

"Don't let those traitors get away!" one of them said. "Stop…." Gunshots rang out as Jacob and Miranda behind the console. A voice spoke up, a voice that was familiar to them. Jacob looked around cover, and saw a dark-skinned man with bleach blonde hair in green and red armor. A turian in brown and black armor and an alien he's never seen before in dark red armor.

"Javik, Dark channel! Garrus, proximity mine!" A green biotic field enveloped the troopers, and a blue warp field triggered an explosion, the troopers replacing the fallen triggered the turian's trap and were killed instantly. The three soldiers put away their weapons. "Jacob, come on out, it's safe" Jacob came out of cover, while Shepherd and his team walked towards them.

"Shepherd, what hell are you doing here?" He asked in disbelief.

Shepherd frowned as he saw Miranda on the floor, her shoulders bleeding. "I should be saying that, but later, Miranda needs medical attention" he said. "Garrus, patch her up"

Garrus nodded and went over to Miranda. "On it, boss"

"Commander, more incoming…" Javik said. They head the sound of footsteps, Shepherd and the others went to cover. Javik killed the engineer trying to set up his turret while Shepherd froze the troopers approaching cover. Jacob charged at them, shattering them like glass. Centurions came and replaced them, they opened fired on Jacob as he went into cover, Shepherd overloaded their shields Javik throw a grenade which lifted them off their feet. Jacob finished them with his shotgun; he then met with the others.

"They're gone, for now…" Jacob said. He went to check on Miranda. "How is she?"

"She's fine, she's knocked out but alive, lost a lot of blood, but this will hold her until we can get her back to the Normandy" Garrus said. Jacob sighs a breath of relief.

"Okay, now that the pleasantries are out-of-the-way, what hell were you two thinking going into a Cerberus base without back-up?!" Shepherd asked angrily. "Why didn't you call me?"

Jacob lowered his head. "We didn't want to bother you, considering…"

Shepherd sighed and calmed down a little. "Look…" His com opened.

"Commander, whatever you're doing you need to hurry, Cerberus is regrouping" Cortez said.

"Cortez, standby, we got someone wounded here, we're bring her back to the shuttle"

"Copy that"

Javik scoffed. "We should just leave her, she'll only slow us down" Jacob glared at the prothean, and was about to say something, but Shepherd spoke.

"Just like we could have left you at the mercy of Cerberus on Eden Prime…" he said coldly.

The prothean scoffed. "Very well…Commander"

Shepherd and team went back to the shuttle; they put Miranda in the shuttle. "Take care of her…"

Cortez nodded. "With my life…" he said. He looked at Shepherd. "Commander, I'm tracking some tech with reaper signature. That's your first sample to grab. I've updated your Navpoint"

"And Lia's device?"

"Ready to use" Cortez said giving the team the devices. The team went to the first Navpoint. Shepherd looked back at Jacob.

"You sure you want come with us? We'll understand if you want to stay by Miranda's side"

Jacob shook his head. "I'm fine; I know she's in good hands, besides I want to pay back those sons of bitches" They then heard the sounds of footsteps.

"There they are, kill them!"

Jacob glowed blue. "Time to go hunting…"


	17. Chapter 13: Cerberus Lab pt2

**Chapter 13: Cerberus Lab pt2**

"It's Shepherd, get him!" One of the troopers said. Cerberus engineers and Centurions came out firing at the team; the Centurions threw out smoke grenades while Engineers used the cover to set their turrets. As soon as the turret activated, it scanned for them and opened fired while the Centurions came close to flank them. Garrus and Shepherd overloaded their shields and Javik used his Dark Channel to mark them Jacob then used his charge and nova to wipe them out. The turrets opened fired on Jacob and he went to cover as the dark channel flew to the next living thing, the Engineers. Shepherd took advantage of the Engineer's need to be close to their turrets; he sent out a warp field and caused a biotic explosion to wipe out the Engineers and their turrets.

"I see you've gotten better. Jacob" Garrus said.

"Well, when you're on the run, it helps with furthering your skill…." He said. "Anymore coming?"

Shepherd looked out of cover and saw more troopers coming. "Yep, Javik lift grenades, Jacob charge and clear the room got it?" Javik and Jacob nodded. Javik threw out his lift grenades at the approaching troopers; it exploded causing them to fly. Shepherd smashed them up in the ceiling with his throw fields while Jacob charged the troopers before they hit the ground. He then got to cover and looked over it.

"Shepherd, all clear" he said. Shepherd and team went to meet Jacob and to his left was a glowing item. It was dark blue and full of wires, and made the spectre's hair stand on end. Shepherd looked at the turian.

"Garrus?" Shepherd asked.

Garrus opened his omni-tool. "Readings are off the charts, no doubts about it, reaper tech" Shepherd nodded, and got a black disk device out of his pack. The young quarian asked EDI back on the ship on how to block reaper signals, and the AI was very thorough on the information. It took her a whole night, but she was able to create a device to safely carry reaper tech without it indoctrinating anyone although she hadn't been able to test it out until now.

"Jacob and Javik, go stand watch for any troopers, Garrus you're with me" Jacob and Javik glared at each other, it was clear ever since the prothean's remark about leaving Miranda behind, they did not like each other, eventually they relented and agreed to the spectre's orders. They started their patrol, walking as far apart from each other as they could.

Garrus shook his head as he was handed the containment device. "You know there's a chance of them going after each other's throats if they're alone, right?"

"Got to learn to work together somehow, might as well be now…" Shepherd typed in the code to release the reaper artifact, the spectre hoped the device worked like it would supposed to do, otherwise they were going to be singing the praises of the reapers until someone shot in the head to put them out of their misery. "Get ready…" The container opened. "Now!"

Garrus quickly waved the device over the artifact, and an energy field enveloped over the artifact. Shepherd checked his omni-tool and it was all green, he nodded to Garrus. The turian breathed a sigh of relief. "Remind me to give that Quarian a good old turian kiss…"

Shepherd chuckled. "I don't think Vega would appreciate kissing his girlfriend, nor would your bondmate…" he said jokingly.

"Come on, Liara's not the jealous type…I think…."

Shepherd rolled his eyes. "Whatever you say…." He opened his com. "Got the artifact, Cortez"

"Roger that. Meet you at the landing pad" Javik and Jacob came to meet with Shepherd, surprisingly enough to the spectre, they didn't kill each other. "Find any troopers?"

Jacob shook his head. "No, but we did find something else…"

"What?"

"Some weird medi-gel experiment…."

Jacob handed the data pad to Shepherd. Apparently, Cerberus was trying to improve on the medi-gel; it worked…just not the way Cerberus wanted. It was a breakthrough for hanar; but useless for humans, so they scrapped it. Shepherd shook his head. "Only Cerberus would call helping aliens a failure…." The team went back to the shuttle to meet with Cortez; the shuttle pilot placed it in the back and went back to guiding them on the Kodiak.

"Second sample located. Updating Navpoint" Cortez said. "Wait, we got Cerberus shuttles inbound, we're not safe here"

"Fly away and stand by, we'll handle the troopers"

"Yes sir!" The shuttle flew away, as Shepherd could here gunshots.

"Damn they don't waste anytime…"

"Yeah, real persistent bastards" The troopers came in force, firing pot shots at the team. Shepherd caught them in a singularity field, while Jacob charge at the sending them flying. Garrus sniped the centurions coming to back up the troopers, and Javik melted them to goo, with his particle rifle. The team made it to another, terminal with reaper tech, as Shepherd was close to releasing the artifact he could hear Cerberus troops getting close.

"Jacob, Javik, cover us!" Shepherd said as he opened the container. As Jacob and Javik was about to get to their positions, two Cerberus troopers came flying down in front of the team. They started shooting Shepherd and Garrus while they were trying to secure the device. "Damn!" A green field enveloped one of the troopers and he was forcefully lifted up and then slammed down. Jacob slammed his fist down on the floor and blew both troopers away, and then gunned them down.

"Shepherd all cleared!" Shepherd nodded and signaled Garrus to contain the artifact.

"Got it!" Shepherd opened his comm. "We got the second sample, Cortez, heading back to you now"

"Negative, Commander! Pad got hot. Had to bug out. Got three birds on my six. Taking fire!" he said. "Shit! Scratch that, make it four. Will rendezvous when I can, out" When the com closed, and they heard more Cerberus troops coming towards them. Shepherd frowned and looked back towards the team.

"Fuck! We don't have a choice we need to hold out until Cortez gets here"

"So, anyone said their last rites?" Garrus asked.

Javik glowed green. "Look at this as a chance to kill more Cerberus, turian" Gunshots rang out as everyone went to cover. They were met by three troopers to the left of them; Javik armed his gun and fire at the troopers. Two of them were a puddle, but the third ran away possibly to regroup with other troopers. The prothean scoffed. "Coward…"

"Everyone stay tight, this could get rough" Shepherd said.

"Commander, on our right!" Javik said. Two engineers sat up their turrets, and the team ran out of the room only to run to some Centurions and guardians. The centurions threw some frag grenades and the team scattered to cover, Shepherd and Garrus overloaded their shields while Javik pulled the guardian's shields away. Jacob charged them smashing them against the wall and shot them with his Graal Spike Thrower. Jacob then heard a beeping sound and looked down, another enemy threw a grenade, Jacob jumped out-of-the-way as it exploded, however he was stuck when more soldiers kept coming. Garrus came over and covered Jacob while he went over to cover.

"Shepherd, we need more room! They're boxing us in!" Jacob said.

"Get to the hanger area, I'll take point, Garrus cover our rear" The turian nodded and switched over to his assault rifle. The team made their way to the main area; it had a lot of cover and lot of room. Unfortunately, it also had two doors for Cerberus to flank them; they could even use the landing area due to their jet boots. "Javik, take a doorway, I'll take the other one"

"What about us Boss?" Garrus asked.

"Take the middle, any Cerberus bastard that lands, wipe them out" Jacob and Garrus nodded and the team scattered.

"Commander, here they come!" Javik said. The troopers came in full speed, guns blazing. Javik fired his particle weapon; the beam tore through the Guardian's shield and his head. Javik scoffed. "Primitives…" Out of the corner came more troopers, Javik threw a lift grenade and made them scatter.

On Shepherd's front, he froze the Centurions and the engineers with a stasis field and threw a warp field, making them fly. A turret fired on the spectre, breaking his shields, Shepherd went back to cover to recharge his shields. A trooper turned the corner with a stun baton, Shepherd countered and flipped him over, he then finished him with a omni-blade to the face. He heard more coming his way, Shepherd charged his Venom Shotgun, and opened fired on the approaching troopers. "Stay focused…this isn't over yet"

"Don't worry about me!" Garrus said shooting down an incoming trooper. Jacob pulled two of the troopers out of flight and charged them off the ledge. Garrus set up more proximity mines in the middle and Jacob equipped his incendiary ammo preparing for the next wave.

"Cortez, do you copy? What your status?" Shepherd asked on his comm.

"Engaging multiple targets. May have to try something risky"

Jacob frowned. "Not with Miri on board!"

"Jacob, I'm fine, you just focus on keeping yourself alive" Miranda said. Her voice was stronger, but was still weak.

"Don't worry, wish me…" The comm shut off abruptly.

"Lieutenant! Shit!"

"It's getting hot here boss, we need an exit plan" Garrus said shooting down more troopers.

"I know, I'll think of something, just keep fighting" Shepherd said throwing lift grenades at the troopers. He then hears metal clangs, and look down. "Shit, smoke grenades! More Centurions!" Shepherd had to back up, and got out his arch projector and fired, he could hear anguish cries in the smoke. His comm opened.

"Commander had to go dark side to shake them. Coming in hot. Be ready" Cortez said.

"Got it, heading for extraction point" Shepherd said. "Everyone, this is it, hold the line!" The battle continued, with troopers pushing the team back. Guardians came from both doors flanking the team, while the troopers and turrets cover them. Jacob and Javik pulled the shields away on both sides, while Garrus hit them back with his concussive shot and Shepherd blasted them with his arc projector. However for every two they killed, four more took their place and they were getting tired from fighting them.

"Tougher bastards than I remember…" Jacob said.

"That what happens when you're implanted with reaper tech" Garrus said.

They then heard the sounds of a shuttle, they turned around and saw it was Miranda on a turret. "Everyone duck!" Miranda said. Shepherd and Jacob enveloped everyone in a barrier and Miranda went to the guns and fired on the troopers, gunning them down anyone who tried to get close. Once the ground team got some breathing room, they got into the shuttle; however Cerberus was done playing with them yet as they opened fired on the shuttle.

"Cortez, get us the hell out of here!" The shuttle flew back to the Normandy.

_**The Normandy**_

Back on the Normandy, Jacob and Miranda went to the Chakwas for injuries; the Normandy went to an undisclosed system to hand off the reaper artifact to the Alliance. The spectre was glad to be rid of the artifacts, even while they were in the containment device they still creeped him out. Shepherd went to the war room to give his report to Hackett. "Commander, we've got our best engineers looking at the reaper tech, you secured from the lab."

Shepherd crossed his arms. "Any idea what they were doing with it?"

"We don't know yet, but whatever it is, it can't be good" Hackett said. "What of Mr. Taylor and Ms. Lawson?"

"They're in the med-bay for injuries…they helped me back at that lab" Shepherd said. "If it's okay with you, I would like them to stay on as members of my team"

"Hmm and how do you know you can trust them?"

"They helped me stop the Collectors a year ago, and they have as much a reason to hate Cerberus as we do, they can be trusted" he said. "Don't worry; they can still give you Intel on the Illusive Man and Cerberus"

Hackett pondered it for a minute. "Very well, they'll stay with your team, good job Commander" he said. "Hackett out"

Shepherd went to the med bay to check on Miranda and Jacob. Jacob was lucky to get off with a few scratches, Miranda however had to be operated on to get the shrapnel out of her shoulder, however thanks to dear old dad she could heal faster than ordinary humans. "Shepherd…"

"How are you guys?"

"Just a few scratches" Jacob said.

"I'll be out for at least a week, Dr. Chakwas said I was lucky" Miranda said.

Shepherd crossed his arms. "Damn right you're lucky, what hell were you guys thinking?" he asked. "If we weren't there to help you out, you two would be dead…"

Miranda lowered her head. "I…I know and I'm sorry…"

Shepherd sat down in the next bed. "So why? I'm all ears"

"M…my father got Orianna…" Miranda said sadly.

"How do you know?" Miranda opened her omni-tool and plays a recording.

_"Miranda, please help! They're after me, they're…" _they then heard a dull thud.

_"Poor girl, if only Miranda didn't involve you in her grudge against me, then maybe you would have been spared this treatment" the man said. "Don't worry; soon it will all be over, my daughter…." _The message was cut and Shepherd saw Miranda clenching her fists tightly.

Shepherd frowned. "How does Cerberus fit into this?"

"We were employed with them remember, they know how protective I am of my sister" She said. "The only reason the Illusive Man, would sell my sister out to my father, is if he wanted something from him"

"Not to mention, its perfect payback for Miri walking away from Cerberus" Jacob said crossing his arms. "We spent the next couple of months getting info, but Cerberus went dark…I mean darker than usual to the point where we had to start raiding Cerberus bases"

Shepherd sighed. "Well then, it's a good thing we have the Shadow Broker on our side" he said. "She can help you locate Cerberus and your sister"

"But what about…?"

The spectre raised his hands. "I know we have to deal with the reapers, but I won't abandon one of my own" Shepherd said. "You want my help, you got it"

Miranda and Jacob looked at each other. "Thank you, Shepherd, we won't forget this…"

"Don't worry about it, what are friends for?"


	18. Chapter 14: Schoolhouse Rumble pt1

**Chapter 14: School House Rumble pt1**

_**The Normandy**_

Shepherd went down to the Med-bay to check on Miranda and Eve, it had been a week since Miranda and Jacob rejoined the Normandy crew. Since they came on board some of the newer crew members were wary of them since they were once Cerberus operatives but the others like Donnelly and Kasumi welcomed them back with open arms. Shepherd went inside as Miranda zipped up the new uniform she got from storage, it was white, blue and skin-tight it was reminiscent of her old Cerberus uniform.

"Hello, Shepherd" Miranda said with a smile.

"Hey Miranda, feeling better?" Shepherd asked.

"Yes, I've just been discharged by Mordin, ready for duty" She said. "What do you need me to do?"

Since settling in on the Normandy, Jacob and Miranda had decided to bunk together in Zaeed's old room. Jacob went back to his old job of maintaining the armory along with James, since then the two have hit it off quite well due to their mutual love of working out. "Well, I could use my XO back, I asked around but nobody seems to want the job"

Miranda chuckled. "No one wants to be the bad guy, alright I'll do it, just like old times" She walked out of the med-bay. Shepherd met with Mordin and Eve, who were talking, since the mission on Sur'Kesh Mordin sealed himself with Eve working on the cure for the genophage. Dr. Chakwas helped sometimes mostly on making Eve comfortable, but ultimately stayed out the way so Mordin could work. As for Eve, he's had some nice conversations with the female krogan, he was pleasantly surprised on how approachable she was. From their talks, he found out that she was a shaman for a female came allied with Weyloc Guld and she volunteered for Maelon's experiments which surprised Shepherd that anyone would go through that pain willingly. When asked what would she do when the cure was made, she said she would create a future where females once again had a say before they were bargaining chips for the males.

"Aware krogan females find scars attractive. Garrus loyal, reasonably intelligent. Bit aggressive. Almost like krogan" Mordin said.

"For the third time doctor, I'm not interested" Eve said annoyed.

"So how is she, Mordin?"

"Ah, Shepherd. We were just…" The door opened and Wrex came in. Wrex was also another topic they talked about, Eve was somewhat impressed that Wrex was focused on rebuilding their race and fighting everything in sight to justify his honor. Though she doesn't tell him that according to her, Wrex's head was big enough to which Shepherd had to agree. When the cure is made, Wrex and Eve was going to make a formidable political couple, the Council was going to be in for a surprise.

"Are you okay?" Wrex asked.

Eve shook her head. "I'm fine, Wrex. You can relax"

Wrex snorted. "Can't be too careful, with Salarian doctors…"

"This one is different"

"I'll see it when I believe it" Wrex said. He then frowned when Mordin came up with a syringe. "What's that?"

"Simple blood test"

"What kind?"

"Kind that ends the genophage "Mordin said. Mordin stuck the needle into Eve's arm, and filled it with orange blood. "Now if you please distractions counterproductive, also affecting comfort of patient" The salarian went to the desk with a microscope.

"You can trust him, he was your inside source after all" Shepherd said.

Wrex crossed his arms. "Maybe, but you never know what a salarian is thinking, never know if they're leading you into a trap…"

Mordin looked back. "Trap? Eve's release was my doing"

"That was then, but she's out now. And if she gets hurt, I'll feel it"

Mordin came up to Wrex and looked him in the eye. "Understand, but my patient. My responsibility, her welfare a priority" he said. "Will not allow her to be compromised by anyone" Wrex was taken aback he didn't expect the salarian to stare him down and stand up to him, and he didn't even have a gun to back him up.

Wrex chuckled softly. "You got a quad, Doctor, keep her safe" Shepherd comm beeped.

"I have to go, but try not to kill while I'm gone" Shepherd went to the CIC and had a talk was Traynor. Traynor was Shepherd's new assistant not that Kelly was gone, she was very smart and capable but she did have self-confidence issues at time. Whenever she spoke to Shepherd, it was through the intercom however when it came to speaking with the Commander in person she would flinch up like he was intimating.

"Um…C-Commander, I've found…. something suspicious. Can I speak with you?"

Shepherd sighed. "At ease, Traynor I'm not going to bite" he said. "What is it?"

"I found something while scanning Alliance channels" Traynor said. "Grissom Academy is requesting help. The reaper front will hit them soon"

Shepherd frowned. "A school open during a war?"

"Grissom Academy is more than a normal school, some of the smartest students that humanity had to offer" she said. "Their Ascension Project is best in the galaxy for human biotic"

"I know, me and Kaiden was trained by members of the project" Shepherd said. "Grissom Academy, huh? I remember sending a kid named David Archer there"

"Some of their work has Alliance support that might be why they stayed"

Shepherd nodded. "Okay, what do we do?"

"A turian evac transport responded to their call, but…"

"But?"

"Something sounded off, so I had EDI analyze it, it's fake…" Traynor said. "EDI thinks its Cerberus; she said it was similar to a faked turian signal that lured you to a Collector ship…?"

Shepherd groaned. "Long story…"

"Anyway, whoever faked it wants us to think Grissom Academy is being evacuated. I think they're still in trouble…"

"Good catch, I'll gather the team" Shepherd said. "Keep this up, and you'll be a part of the Normandy crew in no time"

"Thank you Commander"

_The Jon Grissom Academy, founded in 2176, is the Alliance's premier school for young human biotics. The institution is housed in a space station in orbit over the human colony of Elysium. Its main program, the Ascension Project, is designed both to train and monitor young biotics as well as help them integrate into society after graduation. Unlike the project's previous incarnation, Biotic Acclimation and Temperance Training, or BAaT, the training is not exclusively military in nature._

_The academy also employs scientific personnel, including Dr. Kaylee Sanders, to develop synthetic intelligence systems and biotic amplifiers like the new L4 implants.-Codex_

The Normandy came out the Petra Nebula relay approaching the school, once close the EDI sensed some ships surrounding the academy. Shepherd came to the cockpit to assess the situation. "And there's the folks who answered the distress call. Cerberus cruisers, at least a dozen fighters on blockade duty" Joker said.

The spectre crossed his arms. "Too many for a drawn out fight…" Shepherd said.

"Receiving incoming transmission" EDI said. The com opened to reveal a woman's voice.

"SSV Normandy, this is Kahlee Sanders, director of Grissom Academy. We need your assistance" she said. "Cerberus is attacking the facility. They're after my students"

"Understood, but we're blocked by Cerberus"

"I know, they've taken control of our docking bays"

"Any other way?"

"There's an auxiliary cargo port I could open…"

"We'll take it; we'll come in by shuttle and get your students out there"

"Right, I'll be waiting"

"Joker, I can't believe I'm going to say this, but go wild" Shepherd said. "I need a distraction…"

Joker gave devilish grin. "Got it, Commander…" The shuttle flew out of the Normandy as the cruiser moved to its side and flew at full speed, catching the attention of the Cerberus fighters. "Come and get me" He said with a grin. The fighters fired on the Normandy, and the engines heated up. "Hang on to your asses!" He pressed the boost button. "WHOOHOO!"

_**Grissom Academy**_

The Kodiak docked with the academy, while Shepherd asked Joker to play chicken with the Cerberus Cruisers he really hoped he didn't go overboard. "Well, you told him to distract them…" Miranda said.

"That bosh'tet better not damage the engines, I just fixed it…" Tali said.

Shepherd shook his head. "Keep the shuttle in position! We'll be back!" The team got off the shuttle and went in deeper into the school. So far there were no enemies to face…yet. His comm opened.

"Commander, I'm locked in the server room around the cover" Kahlee said. "Cerberus is trying get in" They then heard some voices in the next room, Shepherd and team went to cover and saw three troopers trying to open the door.

"Get ready! I've almost got the door!" Tali summoned her drone and distracted the troopers. While the troopers were distracted, Shepherd and Miranda came in close behind them. Miranda pointed her omni-tool at the troopers and the troopers instantly froze and then a stream of flames came out shattering them. Shepherd blasted the last trooper with his shotgun, Tali joined them and saw it was open slightly.

"She's lucky we got here, one more push and they would have gotten in…" Tali said.

Shepherd nodded. "Sanders, we're clear. It's me" A blonde-haired woman in an Alliance uniform came out with a shotgun, when she saw Shepherd and team she breathe a sigh of relief and put away her gun. She walked towards them.

"Commander, thank you. Admiral Anderson said you were the best" she said. "And with Cerberus coming for my students, I need the best"

"No problem, how many of you are there?"

Sanders sighed. "Fewer than twenty. Most were sent home when word of the reaper invasion spread" Shepherd gave Tali and Miranda a signal to check for enemies. Shepherd followed Sanders to the terminal.

"And the others?"

"A few volunteered to stay, some were prototyping for the Alliance" She explained. "Others are biotics; they've trained for military operations, working as biotic artillery, one of our teachers is with them"

Shepherd nodded. "So, you know Anderson"

"Yes we met twenty years ago, when David was a spectre candidate" She said "I was there when Saren betrayed him, how is he?"

Shepherd lowered his head. "He's back on Earth, in the middle of that cluster-fuck"

"I see, he's a good man, is he…alive?"

"Alive and fighting, he's leading a resistance movement"

Sanders smiled. "Good. If we get out of here…well just tell him to stay alive"

"I will, so what about the students? A few months knocking over dummies can't prepare them for something like this…"

Sanders sighed. "Agreed, but the Alliance needs every resource it can get, and my students are unique" she said. "They wanted to help, how could we say no?" They heard beeping from the terminal.

"What's happening?"

"I've tried to get communications working" A woman spoke.

"This is Chamb…There are students trapped….Orion Hall...Hurry, we're…boxed in…They're…fast!" The message was too broken up to hear clearly, something about the voice was familiar. Shepherd snapped out of his thoughts when Sanders slammed her hands on the desk.

"Damn it!"

"Where's Orion Hall?" he asked.

"Back out the door and down the hallway. I can get the door open"

"I'll get the kids here and make a run for the shuttle" Shepherd said. "What about you?"

"I'll stay put, I'll try to regain control some of our systems" she said. "Good luck…"

Shepherd nodded and went out to meet Tali and Miranda. "Guys, new objective, we need to save the students in Orion Hall" The two women nodded and the team went in deeper into the school. As they went through, they could hear the screams and gunfire. In the room before them were two Cerberus troopers dragging a boy no older than fifteen, but with the systems under Cerberus control they couldn't save him and watched him get taking as he cried and pleaded for help. The scene made the team angry, but none more than Miranda…

"Damn them, I can't believe the organization that saved me has stooped to this…" Miranda said.

"Was it any surprise that they would turn into this with the Illusive Man in charge?" Tali asked.

"No I guess not…I've always knew about some of the less than ideal methods of the organization, but…I ignored it, because it was easier…" She said. "I was foolish…"

"We all have our sins to bear Miranda, some more than others…" Shepherd said. "The important thing is that you changed, before it was too late"

"Yes I heard about the Illusive Man's indoctrinated soldiers…" Miranda said. "The fact he's willing to do this…he has to be stopped, no matter what…we can at least stop them from abducting these kids" She walked away.

"She really has changed…I have to tell you the truth I wasn't sure about her being back on the Normandy…" Tali said. "I was wrong…"

Shepherd smiled. "She's come a long way, come on, let's catch up to her…"


	19. Chapter 15: Schoolhouse Rumble pt2

**Chapter 15: School House Rumble pt2**

The team made their way to the center of the station, despite the sounds chaos they were hearing they hadn't seen any Cerberus troopers since helping Sanders earlier. They knew Cerberus was busy hunting down the students and the staff but surely the team would have grabbed their attention by now. "Weird, we should have encountered some troopers by now" Miranda said cautiously.

"I know, Wayne I don't like this…" Tali said.

Shepherd nodded. "Agreed, expect ambushes…" They went into a new area, from the looks of the room, it used to be a lounge for the students to unwind while they weren't in class. Now it was just another ransacked room, as they turned the corner they heard a voice. "Get down…" They took cover behind a ruined couch, Shepherd looked over cover and saw three Cerberus troopers they were talking to a boy in the red and black uniform of the Academy holding up a biotic barrier, he looked no younger than eighteen.

The boy looked like he was going to give out soon, Shepherd guessed that the boy had been running from Cerberus the whole time, when they caught up to him he summoned his barrier to protect himself and was holding up ever since. The spectre had to give the boy credit holding up a full-power barrier was a huge task even for a biotic as experienced as himself, however from the way the way the barrier was flickering he was on his last leg and Cerberus knew it. All they had to do was erode his will while he tired himself out and they could drag him to god know where with no opposition. The boy glared at them and spoke.

"Bastards…" He growled.

"Reilly Bellamine, drop the barrier, now!" one of the troopers said.

"F-fuck y-you!" Reilly said weakly.

"How long do you think you can last? Nobody's going to hurt you"

"Bullshit, I saw what you did to my friends!" he said.

"They were optional, just like your sister. You give us trouble, we'll find her" Reilly lost his defiant look and gave a look for pure hatred. He started to glow, it looks like he was going to fight them, but in his state he would only get himself hurt or worse and that's what the troopers wanted.

"You monsters!" Shepherd had enough and went out cover and enveloped the troopers in a singularity field. The surprised troopers yelled in surprise as they floated aimlessly in the air, Miranda slammed them to the ground. As the troopers were groaning from the pain Tali came up close and finished them with shotgun blasts. Shepherd and Miranda joined Tali and the boy gave wary look at them, consider what happened to him earlier they couldn't blame him for his mistrust. "W-who are you?"

Shepherd looked at the others and signaled them to put down their weapon to not alarm him further. Tali and Miranda put their weapons away and Shepherd did the same, Riley seemed to calm down a little but not enough to lower his barrier. "Commander Shepherd of the Alliance, I'm here to get you out" Reilly calmed down and dropped his barrier; he dropped to the floor weakly. Shepherd crouched down. "Are you okay? Can you stand?"

He nodded and got off the floor though he almost collapsed once again until the Spectre kept him from falling. "Thank you" he said as he pulled away.

"We took care of Cerberus behind us, get to Kahlee Sanders at security"

The boy shook his head. "I can't do that! My little sister, Seanne is out there, I'm worried about her" Reilly said. "I…I have to find her, she doesn't have biotics like I do, they'll kill her…" Miranda placed her hand on his shoulder and looked him in the eye.

"Don't worry we'll find her, and we'll protect her, promise" Miranda said gently. "Now get to safety…"

"Okay and thank you" Reilly said walking away.

Tali shook her head. "This isn't right; they're kids they should never have to deal with this…"

"Cerberus don't care, all they care about is power, even more of a reason to stop them" The team went into the next room, the room was a classroom and from the datapads that were lying around it was for the biotics students. They went to classroom next to it, they heard footsteps and went to cover, where they witness a fleeing student being gunned down, they took cover and Cerberus operatives to came through the two doors on the far end of the room.

Miranda opened her omni-tool and large orange shield came out. Shepherd looked at her surprised. "That's an N7 grade Paladin shield, how the hell did you get that?" he asked.

"Let's just say the N7 servers aren't as secure as the Alliance believes" she said. She got out of cover as the troopers stated firing at her, Miranda ducked behind her shield and froze them with her snap freeze, and she then waved her shield and smashed them to pieces. Shepherd looked gob smacked; he noticed a grenade at the woman's feet. "Miranda below you!"

She looked down and stepped back as the grenade exploded, Miranda held up her shield to protect herself from the blast and fell back to one of the desks. The Centurions opened fired on Miranda pinning her down, Shepherd took out his Arc Projector, and the bolts went from Centurion to Centurion stunning them in their tracks. Tali came in close and shot them with her shotgun, more shot rang out and Tali went to cover and summoned her drone at the doorway blocking their entry. While the new troopers were busy with Chatika, Shepherd threw a lift grenade and caused them to fly. Miranda finished them with a warp field ending the fight. As the team was about to leave the room, the PA opened.

"There are Alliance Soldiers on the station, they claim to want to help you" a man said. "All they are doing is threating your safety; do not risk getting caught in the crossfire, surrender now"

"Holly Merizan, can you here us? We found your parents, they're safe at a Cerberus sanctuary" he continued. "Surrender and you can see them again, but only if you let us help you" Cerberus now knew they were here and it was making them worried about their chance so now they were trying to break the students' will to fight by bringing up their parents and promise they would help them, a simple divide and conquer strategy. Seasoned soldiers like the team can see this a mile away, but the problem was the students weren't soldiers….they were kids fighting for their lives and worried about the safety of their families which meant they were easily swayed. The team had to wonder how many kids did they capture because their tactic?

"Bosh'tet…" Tali growled. Shepherd put his hand on her shoulder.

"Focus, rookie…getting angry will not help them…" he said.

She took a deep breath. "Right…." They moved along until they were back in the hallways. As they reached the center, they heard the sound of movement with put the team at attention. Shepherd signaled the team to spread out and patrol, after a moment of nothing they saw movement in corner. Shepherd called the team together to investigate as they came close they saw a brown hair fair-skinned girl on the floor holding a gun up at them with one arm while holding her bloodied side with the other one. She was shot in the side; she was probably the one of the student that ran on the classroom earlier.

The girl waved the gun at them, her arms shaking. The pistol's indication on the side was red, it had no more heat sinks to us, she tries to shoot them all she would get it is a beep and some hot air. However with her fear and dizziness from her wound it was likely she didn't notice. "Stay back! I'll….I'll…"

"My god, she bled out if we don't help her" Miranda said. Shepherd nodded and bent down. The girl scattered back with the gun aimed squarely at Shepherd,

"S-stay back, I…I'm warning you…"

Shepherd lowered her gun and tried to calm her down, she couldn't hurt him, but in her state she could make her wound worst. "Shh, I'm here to help, are you Seanne?"

"H-how do you know my name?" She asked nervously.

"I helped out your older brother earlier, Reilly, he's with the director as we speak…" Shepherd said. Shepherd patched her up with medi-gel; luckily medi-gel worked quickly when applied directly to the wound. Sure it stung like hell, but they couldn't complain when they're in a bad situation. "Can you stand?"

"Yes" She stood up slowly.

"Good, get to the security office, Ms. Sanders and your brother are there, you run and don't look back, Understood?" She shook her head. "Good now go, I took care of the troopers, it should be safe"

"Okay, thank you mister" She ran away. His comm opened.

"Commander, I got an emergency message from Orion Hall" Sanders said. "One of our instructors are there, but can't hold for much longer"

"Understood, we're almost there, I've sent another student your way, she's been injured, but I patched her up, get ready…"

"Understood and thank you" The comm closed.

"Alright people double time, we got kids to save" The team ran to Orion Hall, when they open the door, there were met with a huge surprise. It was their old friend Jack fighting off Cerberus troops.

"Eat this!" She said pushing them back with a biotic throw.

Shepherd blinked. "Jack?" The biotic looked behind her, her eyes wide.

"Shepherd? Bucket? Cheerleader?" Unknown to Jack a trooper was coming behind her with a stun stick.

"Jack behind you!" Before Jack could react, a bullet tore through the trooper's skull. The team looked up and saw Kelly with a pistol in her hand.

"Kelly too?" Kelly looked down with wide eyes.

"Commander?" They then heard a loud thud to their side; it was an Atlas mech walking in. It was about to fire on one of the students; Jack dived in front and raised a barrier, protecting the student from the missile fire. She glowed blue ready to face the giant mech, before they could fight, Shepherd and his team fired on the mech getting its attention.

"Everyone get down, this thing is too much for you! Shepherd, keep it off us!" Jack ran with the students.

"You heard the lady, surround it and take it out!" Miranda and Tali nodded. Shepherd raised his omni-tool and drained it's shields while Tali summoned her drone to keep its attention from the team. Miranda went behind the mech and froze it's venting system, slowing it down.

"Shield's gone Wayne!" Tali said. The mech tried to fire, but it was too slow, Miranda went to its side and used her Flamer, to melt its armor, Shepherd and Tali pelted it with shotgun blasts. The mech was about to fire its other gun, but Tali sabotaged the gun causing it to explode. With one last shot from Miranda and Shepherd's gun, the mech overloaded and exploded.

"Shepherd more on the way!" Jack said. The troopers came from both doors and fired at the students, Shepherd pulled the troopers away and Miranda slammed them to the ground, snapping their necks. Tali summoned her drones and blasted them with her shotguns. After a while, the troopers stopped coming, they were safe for now.

Jack chuckled and lowered her barrier. "Kahlee said she was putting out and SOS, but I had no idea King Boy Scout would show up" She then faced her students. "All right, Amp Check! Prangley those fields were weak, Cerberus isn't gonna lie down out of pity like that girl you took to prom"

"Got it, boss lady!"

"Grab juice and an energy bar, we go in five" Jack said. "Red, check for injuries, I'll be back soon"

Kelly kissed her lips. "Say hi for me, 'k?" Jack smirked at her girlfriend and jumped down to meet Shepherd. The spectre expected a handshake, but instead Jack punched him in the face. Despite being a teacher, Jack was still as feisty as ever and could still throw a punch.

"Ow! What the hell, Jack?" Shepherd asked rubbing his face.

"Idiot, this is what happens when you fuck with Cerberus"

"Shit, don't you think I know that? I didn't have a choice then!"

Jack scoffed. "I'm sure that's a big comfort to the people Cerberus has killed!"

Miranda crossed her arms. "Classy as ever I see, Jack…"

"Cheerleader, what a surprise! Got tired of sucking the Illusive Man's dick?"

"Speaking of sucking, how did a dime store reject like you get a job shaping young minds?" Miranda asked. "I didn't think psychosis was a job requirement…"

Jack glowed blue and got in her face. "Want to go, bitch?!"

Miranda glowed blue. "Anytime, Jackie…"

Tali shook her head. "It's been a year since you've seen each other, and this is the first thing you two do?" she asked annoyed. "Like dealing with children…"

Shepherd chuckled. "I don't know, I think it's their way of saying they miss each other…" Miranda and Jack glared at Shepherd.

"LIKE HELL!" Both women said.

"Look, all I care about is getting my guys out of here" Jack said regaining her composure.

"Your guys?" Shepherd asked.

Jack looked back at her kids and girlfriend. "Yeah, I guess so"

"Then we'll get them out" Miranda said surprising the biotic. "Promise"

"Wow, Cheerleader…"

Miranda cleared her throat. "Don't get me wrong, I'm not doing this for you, I'm doing this because Cerberus went too far…" she said turning her back.

"And I can't think of anyone more capable" Shepherd said.

Jack snorted. "Well I learned something from you damn speeches" she said. "The Alliance knew I helped you and gave me a chance, they gave me this and apparently the kids responded well to my style"

"The Psychotic biotic!"

"I will destroy you!"

Tali smiled. "Well, you have some fans"

Jack rubbed her neck sheepishly. "Drink you juice Rodríguez, you couldn't destroy wet tissue paper" Shepherd smirked and his com opened.

"Cortez, to extraction team, Cerberus is coming back"

"How long?"

"Two minutes tops, after that we won't be able to get past them" Shepherd looked at the kids; he knew going back now would cause lots of casualties. "Get back to the ship, we'll find another way off the ship"

"Sir, Good luck"

"You sure Wayne?" Tali asked.

"I'm sure" He contacted Sanders; it was time to get out of here.


	20. Chapter 16: Schoolhouse Rumble pt3

**Chapter 16: School House Rumble pt3**

Tali was upstairs in the room Jack, Kelly and the students used as a bunker hard at work with the terminal before her. As she worked she could hear the nervous chatter of the students behind her, she didn't blame them before all of this started they were only focused on typical teenage things. Now they had to deal with a group of people hunting them down and ancient machines terrorizing their homes and their families, it would be too much for any person to bear. Kelly came up and calmed the students down, and then came over to the quarian. "How's it going?" she asked.

"Almost done" Tali said. She looked at Kelly for a bit, the woman had changed a lot in just a year, back during the mission against the Collectors Kelly was very happy-go-lucky and peppy. She was one of the few Cerberus members Tali liked right of the gate, though she was Cerberus she truly believed she doing the right thing. Now she was much stronger. "It's good to see you again, Kelly"

Kelly smiled. "You too, Tali, I was worried when I heard about Earth" She then looked down at Jack on the lookout with Shepherd and Miranda. "Jack was too, even if she doesn't admit it" she said. "How's the crew?"

"Well, Garrus and Jacob are back with us, and Mordin is on the ship helping to broker peace between the Krogans and the Turians so the turians can help with Earth"

"I'm glad everyone's doing well and there's some hope for us" Kelly sighed. "Between the reaper reports and Cerberus going insane, it has been hard trying keep the students spirits up" Tali nodded in acknowledgment, the war had been hard on everyone she could only hope that the Crucible can end it before things get worse.

"Any family?" she asked.

Kelly lowered her head. "One, my mother, we been distant since my dad died when I was fifteen" she said. "Me joining Cerberus hadn't help things, but still I worry about her…" Kelly's talk about her distant mother made her think of her father, even though she was still angry with him some part of her worried about him. While the Migrant Fleet was as large or larger than the turian's fleet, their ships and weapons were centuries old and it wouldn't take much for the reapers to wipe them out. She shook her head and went back to work.

Moments later, Kelly, Tali and the students went downstairs and met with Shepherd, Jack, and Miranda. "Done" Tali said approaching the team. "All the cameras are under Sanders' control"

"Okay, tell me again why the cameras are so important, again?" Shepherd asked. His com opened.

"We need to reach the Cerberus shuttles. The cruiser won't auto-target friendly ships, which mean we'll have a fighting chance at escaping" Sanders explain.

"By giving her the cameras, she can find a path, from boxing us in" Miranda said. "Genius"

"So what's the fastest way out of here?"

"Through the Atrium, but Cerberus had sealed the doors"

Shepherd smirked. "Not a problem for our number one genius…" Tali nodded and went to the door and worked her little fingers fast, after a moment, the lock turned green and opened. The PA then sounded.

"Students of Grissom Academy, the station is sealed. Commander Shepherd can't save you…"

Shepherd frowned. "Want a bet, asshole?"

"All he can do is get you killed. Surrender peacefully, and you won't be harmed" The students looked at each other, unsure if they could do this. Cerberus was doing a very good job preying on their confidence, but from what Jack told him about them, they were very capable. However it didn't mean anything if they believed they were defeated before they started.

"Damn it, they're messaging everyone. Students, switch your omni-tools to privacy mode, so they can't track you" Sanders said. The student's pressed the button and the man talking went away.

"What if they're not lying…?" Rodriguez asked nervously.

"They're lying, trust me on this, besides you held your own against them, and you've been taught by the best" Shepherd said. "You can do this"

Kelly put a hand on her shoulder and smiled at the girl. "He's right, you'll be fine, Julia"

"So put on your balls and kick some ass, all of you" Jack said.

"Yes ma'am!" Her students said.

"We'll shadow you from above, while you draw their fire" Jack said.

"Sounds like a plan, but play it safe" Shepherd said. Jack nodded and her team went upstairs. The team headed downstairs and was met with Cerberus forces, there was an Atlas accompanied by countless Centurions, Guardians, and Combat Engineers.

"They came out in force, didn't they?" Tali asked.

Shepherd cracked his knuckles. "Good that means more for us to kill" To his right, he could see the engineers setting up their turrets. "Rookie, can you handle engineers?"

Tali smirked. "On it!" The Quarian hacked the turret and the gun turned on their former allies, while she handed the engineers, Miranda and Shepherd dealt with Centurion and Guardians. Shepherd used his singularity field to separate the guardians from their shield, while Miranda froze the Centurions in their tracks. While the team was focused on the lesser enemies, the Atlas was targeting them, only to be hit with biotic fields. The team looked up and saw Jack and her students pelting the heavy mech with biotic fields.

"Alright, kids kick their asses!" Jack said. The mech changed targets and aimed its weapon at Jack. "Barriers up!" Prangley and Rodriguez moved up front and created a huge barrier; the missile hit the barrier and made their legs buckle a little. "Smith, Langley, Chan and Grayson wipe them out!" The four kids glowed blue, and simultaneously fired wrap fields at the mech, while Jack and Kelly was shooting at it. Eventually it became too much for the mech, and it exploded.

"Not bad…" Shepherd said with a smirk. The team finished the last trooper, and they went on to the next area to their side, until they were met with more troopers. Shepherd opened his com.

"Kahlee, we're past the Atrium, we should be at the hanger shortly, after we deal with Cerberus"

"Understood, I'm taking the back route with the other students, I'll meet you there"

"So far, so good…" Miranda said. "Let's hope we keep our luck going…" The biotic students pelted the troopers with more biotic fields, playing havoc with their defenses; Shepherd took out his Arc Projector and fired at Cerberus' reinforcements, stunning them while Miranda and Tali wiped them out. More troopers came in above them shooting at them; Shepherd and team went upstairs and were stopped by two turrets and were approached by two Guardians. Tali summon Chatika to distract the Guardians and then hacked the two turrets. While the engineers and troopers were busy, Shepherd and Miranda came in close with shotguns and flames respectively.

Meanwhile, Jack's team was holding their own against some Centurions and Troopers. Langley and Chan pulled them while Smith and Grayson wiped them out with warp fields. After they fell more came, Rodriguez got shot in the arm, and cried in pain. "This isn't dodgeball, Rodriguez! Keep your barriers up!" Jack ordered. "Prangley, slap some medi-gel on her" Prangley nodded while Grayson and Smith took his place with the barrier.

Rodriguez winced when the medi-gel was applied to her arm. "I'm okay, I can keep fighting!" She said.

"Like hell you are, stay down! So help me if you die on me, I will kick your ass!"

"Yes ma'am!" Cerberus came at their side, and Kelly shot of them in the head.

"Stay away from our kids!" Kelly said shooting the third trooper. Chan spoke up.

"Ma'am, Cerberus is behinds us" Jack glowed blue and blew them away with her shockwave.

"You come after my kids, and you Cerberus fucker are dead, you hear me?!" When the last trooper fell, Jack's comm opened. "Yeah…?"

"You guys, alright up there?"

"Rodriguez took one in the arm…because she didn't watch her barrier!"

"Commander, Jack we've reached the shuttles" Sanders said.

"Were you spotted?" Shepherd asked.

"No, but I have no doubt that they're on to us, you need to hurry" Shepherd went in the next room, where they heard voice coming from their side. The team went to cover and saw two Cerberus troopers talking to three people inside a barrier. The barrier wasn't made of dark energy, but by some kind of device which meant they weren't biotics.

"That's an impressive barrier, Octavia. Our files states you were a genius at shield technology" one of the troopers said. "Your talents are wasted with the Alliance"

Octavia frowned. "I could say the same with you and Cerberus"

"How long do think you can keep this up? Eventually the battery will run out, and you and David will be all ours" Shepherd's eyes widen at hearing the name.

"David? Does he mean David Archer?" Tali asked. "He's still here?"

Shepherd frowned. "Looks like it…" Shepherd went out of cover and trapped them in a stasis field, and Miranda threw a warp field instantly killing them. They walked forward and met three people, a dark-skinned woman with short black hair, an Asian man tending to the device next to him and a bald fair-skinned young man. The bald man looked up and smiled, it was David, the young man Shepherd and Tali had rescued from that hell on Aite. "W-who are you?" Octavia asked nervously. "Stay back!"

"I'm Commander Shepherd with the Alliance, I'm here to help"

"I didn't buy it from the last guy and I've got no reason to buy it now" David got up and walked up to the barrier.

"The square root of 906.01 equals…" He looked so much better than he was months ago.

_**Months ago**_

_"QUIET! PLEASE MAKE IT STOP!" Another glow happened, and it condensed into a ball of light and dives to the ground causing a brief blinding flash, revealing David…real David… Shepherd and Tali gasped in horror at what they saw, it was worse than what Shepherd saw._

_"Oh my god…"_

_"Keelah…"_

_They were treated to a grisly sight of a naked young man suspended upright in midair with nearly a dozen cables tapping into his arms and nervous system. His eyes were kept forced open, fluid on them that was certainly not tears. A pair of feeding tubes extended down his throat, keeping him from dying, forced into this living hell for as long as his captors deemed it necessary. His skin was deathly pale, from being in the darkness for so long, despite being force-fed David was emaciated, with a lot of the system not working from David's rampage the feeding tubes didn't as good as it was supposed to._

_"Quiet…please make it stop…." Voice spoke up._

_"Wait, Commander!" Archer ran to them, without warning Shepherd punched the scientist with a look of pure hatred on his face. The spectre was beating the life out of Archer, Tali ran to Shepherd trying to stop the spectre from killing him, even though it was what the scientist deserved. Shepherd's breathing was hard, not from exhaustion but from the rage he felt for the man, Tali hadn't seen him this angry since the X-57 incident two years ago. When Shepherd calmed down enough, he spoke with a rough voice._

_"You son of a bitch, he begged you, BEGGED YOU!" He growled._

_Archer got up, bruised and bloodied from Shepherd's assault from earlier. For his credit, Archer didn't cower in fear, but Tali could tell he was afraid. "I know how this must look, but I never intended any harm to come to him. You must believe me"_

_"Believe you? You lied to us so you can keep this horror a secret" Tali said angrily. "I should let Wayne kill you for you what you did"_

_"It's not how I planned this, it was an accident, seeing David communicate with the geth…it all seem harmless" Archer said._

_"And before you knew it you were running your own hell" Shepherd said with venom._

_"I had no choice! The demands…"_

_"THERE'S ALWAYS A CHOICE! I had to watch my sister die in my arms, and you…you still had your brother and YOU DO THIS!" Shepherd yelled._

_"Any war we fight with the geth will be bloody, I had to find the way to avoid that, I did what I had to do!"_

_"So you decided to play god with David's life and with the lives of the people here, you disgust me"_

_"If my research spares millions of mothers the loss of their sons and daughters, then I can rest easy."_

_"Tell that to your brother and try to justify that to him" Tali hissed. "Thanks to you, he will never be the same"_

_"The damage may not be permanent, he may recover some semblance of his mind" Archer said._

_"Maybe, but not here and not with you" Shepherd said pulling up his com._

_"What are you doing?"_

_"I've seen enough of you cruelty to know he'll never be free, I'm taking him away" Shepherd said._

_Archer took out his gun and pointed at him. "No! He's too valuable!" Shepherd bioticlly took the gun away and took out his omni-blade and stopped before his neck._

_"I should kill for what you've done here, but…" he looked at David "…David doesn't need this, he needs help" he said. He then grazed Archer's neck with blade, making it draw blood. "If I get the slightest hint that you're going to come after David again, or restart these experiments, I will carve you up like the gutless piece of shit you are, and I will make sure your death is slow and painful as possible" Shepherd dropped the mortified scientist and released David._

_**Now**_

"30.1" Shepherd simply said.

David smiled at him. "Hello Commander Shepherd" Octavia and her friend looked at him.

"David, you know him?"

"Yes, he rescued me from Cerberus, sent me hear, made it quiet" Octavia took down the barrier.

"Sorry"

Shepherd shook his head. "Don't worry about it, I'm more impressed with how you kept yourselves safe" he said. "Jack and the biotic students are up there, stay close, we'll get you out of here"

"Okay, thanks" She said walking away leaving David.

Tali smiled. "He looks better, healthier"

"I remember you, Miss Tali…" David said. "Sorry"

"You have nothing to apologize for, I just glad we were able to help" she said.

"How are you doing, kid?" Shepherd asked.

"I'm fine, I've been counting…"

"What?"

David smiled. "The number of days you've lengthened my life" he said. He looked at the door behind him. "The security office, I hacked the door, guns lots of guns. Goodbye"

Shepherd nodded. "Take care, kid" The team went to the security room, and equipped themselves before moving on. They went on to the next area, and saw a lone engineer talking with the other troopers next to them was an Atlas mech he just fixed. Shepherd snuck up to the engineer and gutted him before entering the mech. He turned on the mech, the systems were all green and he closed the hatch, it seems the reinforced glass was the only thing that engineer weren't able to fix. He pressed a few buttons and activated the shield to compensate for the ruined hatch. Shepherd opened his com.

"Jack, how are you guys?"

"Shit, Cerberus got us pinned; get your ass over here!" Jack said.

"On our way, just hang on!" Shepherd said. "Let's go!" They entered the next area and saw Jack and her students fighting the troopers off. Shepherd fire the Atlas' missiles at the centurions and troopers, while Miranda and Tali dealt with the guardians. The shield sparked and the side door came several troopers, as powerful as the Atlas was it could not turn on a dime. Tali summoned her drone as Miranda burned them as they approached. From the top floor, troopers came in from the side to flank Jack's team. As they passed one of their generators, Kelly shot it and stunned the troopers; Jack glowed and blew them back with a shockwave. When their load was lightened, Jack and the other moved to the exit. After all of the waves of ground troops were down, an enemy Atlas came through the door where you entered.

"Jack?"

"We're all in, get your ass out of there" Shepherd activated the auto-pilot and the self-destruct. Shepherd got out and the team made it over to the shuttles, while the mech walked towards the enemy mech. As the shuttle escaped, the last thing they could heard was the sound of an explosion, they made their way back to the Normandy.


	21. Chapter 17: Iron Empress

**Chapter 17: Iron Empress**

"Jack?" Shepherd asked.

"We're all in, get your ass out of there" Shepherd activated the auto-pilot and the self-destruct. Shepherd got out and the team made it over to the shuttles, while the mech walked towards the enemy mech. As the shuttle escaped, the last thing they could heard was the sound of an explosion, they made their way back to the Normandy.

Back on the shuttle everyone was exhausted from the ordeal, especially the students. Shepherd was impressed with them they worked well together, and they took orders in a snap. Jack had really done an excellent job with teaching her students; maybe there was something to this biotic artillery. Shepherd opened his com. "Joker, we flew out of a Cerberus shuttle, watch your fire"

"Right got you on sensors, preparing for your arrival" Joker said. Shepherd nodded and sat in his seat. Sanders walked up to him.

"Thank you, Commander. We would have been done for if it wasn't for you"

Shepherd shook his head. "No need, Jack and her students were more than able to hold their own"

Jack smirked. "Damn right, next place we dock you're all getting inked" she said. "My treat"

"Some of us aren't old enough to get tattoos, ma'am" Grayson said.

"Screw that, if you're old enough to take down those Cerberus fuc…troopers, you're old enough to get inked" Sanders shook her head, while she wasn't sure about the tattoos, she agreed with Jack and Shepherd that the students more than proved their worth. She knew that if the students had gotten out, the Alliance would call on them to fight the war, she have been very reluctant about it, they may have been biotics but they were still children…some weren't even old enough to drink yet.

"I was going to relegate them to support roles, but maybe they are ready for the front lines" Sanders said. Jack and Kelly looked at each other, but the kids eyes all lit from Sanders statement. It was what they trained for; after all however Shepherd spoke up.

"Maybe they are ready, but the Alliance need support roles and I think they fit better as that" The students looked at each other, they were obviously upset about not going into the front lines, but the spectre wasn't about to send out kids to their deaths before their time. "I know it's not what you want, but we don't need more artillery we need barriers for our frontlines" he said. "This war is only going to get worse as time goes, the more of our side you can save, the better off we'll be"

"Besides, I'm sure we'll get some shots in" Jack said with a smirk. The com opened.

"Commander, we have on visual, preparing to dock" Joker said. "Hey Jack now that you're Alliance, are you going to wear a uniform or just have the officer bars tattooed on?"

Jack's eye twitched. "Screw you Fu…" She looked at the students and sucked her teeth in annoyance. "Flight Lieutenant…"

Joker chuckled. "Uh…what the hell was that?"

Kelly tried to stifle a laugh. "One of the conditions for Jack's employment was to cut the profanity" she said amused. "She's still working on that…" Jack gave her girlfriend a look of annoyance, but Kelly jut smirked at her.

"What, she has a swear jar?" Joker asked. "I wonder how many ships the Alliance bought from that…"

"Kids, cover your ears" Jack said. "Hey Joker, fu…"

_**The Normandy**_

The shuttle made it back on the Normandy, the students bunked in the crew quarters until they made it back to the Citadel since it was the only place that was safe at the time. Shepherd went into the war room; he had a message from Anderson on Earth most likely because he heard about Grissom Academy. He opened the com, and Anderson's image appeared before him, he looked so tired but at least he was alive. "Shepherd, damn if you aren't a sight for sore eyes"

Shepherd smiled. "Go to see you too, sir"

"Sir? You may back with us, but that doesn't give you permission to go all formal on me" Anderson joked.

The spectre chuckled. "Then, I'm glad you're able to keep your ass alive, old man"

Anderson smirked. "That's more like it, I heard about your mission to Grissom Academy, good work getting those kids out of there" he said. "I shudder to think what Cerberus would have done to them…"

"You and me both…" Shepherd said. "They want to help, so I requested they be put in support roles but I'm still not so sure…"

Anderson sighed. "I know what you mean…they're too young to experience the horrors of war, especially this one…" he said. He looked back at the ruins behind him, it was once a beautiful city but now it was nothing but ruins and the sound of carnage. Anderson closed his eyes and looked at Shepherd. "They're the best that humanity has to offer and we're forced to throw them to the wolves….Goddamnit I hate this war!"

The admiral calmed down. "Hackett didn't mention in his report…"

Shepherd smiled. "Don't worry, Miss Sanders is okay, she's with us on the Normandy with the recruits"

"Thanks Shepherd, when I heard about the attack…well, I've lost too many friends already…"

"She asked me to tell you to stay alive"

Anderson chuckled. "Did she now? Well…"

"She misses you…"

"I miss her too…the galaxy has a way of reminding you of what you could've been" he said. "Maybe once this damn war is over….well I can only hope…so what's your plan?"

"We're on route to the Citadel; hopefully I can pull some strings on letting the kids use C-sec and Spectre facilities to train, though it won't be easy"

"That's good plan…" Anderson said. "Good luck, Shepherd…" His image faded.

"You too, sir"

_**The Citadel**_

The Normandy docked at the Citadel; Shepherd went to the Council to request Jack's students to use the Spectre training room. Surprisingly enough, he was able to convince them quite easily, with only Valern disagreeing however it was nothing against the students and more because Shepherd was working to cure the genophage. Next he came to Bailey who up to his shoulders in paperwork, the C-sec Commander heard what Shepherd had to say however Bailey wasn't as convinced. "Huh, let the kids use our facilities, I don't know Shepherd…" Bailey said.

"Look I'm not saying you should do it out of the kindness of your heart" Shepherd said. "Maybe you could put them to work; a lot of those kids are tech geniuses…"

Bailey pondered the thought, with the reapers out there they do needed to buff security and weapons. C-sec was currently stretched thin with keeping the peace, upgrading systems and regulating supplies for the refugees. They had some help with some spectre allowing militias to be form and some of the more well off citizens volunteering with the refugees and clinics, but it was not enough. More and more refugees were arriving every day and soon they would be overwhelmed. "And the kids are that good huh?"

Shepherd smirked. "The best"

"Okay, you got yourself a deal; I'll even put in training lessons for free"

"Thanks, Bailey, I owe you" Shepherd's omni-tool beeped.

"Got to go…" Shepherd walked out of Bailey's office and read his omni-tool, his eyes grew wide.

_**Purgatory (Citadel)**_

The Purgatory Bar is a popular dance club and bar on the Citadel, though it is not known by the Avina VI to be a registered nightclub. Various citizens from all races often visit the bar to drink and dance in order to detach themselves from the issues of the war with the Reapers.

Shepherd shook his head at the sight. "Poor bastards…"

He went to the VIP Lounge and saw a human woman speaking to a rather ticked off asari. It was Aria T'loak, the infamous warlord of Omega and leader of the Terminus Clans; it was obvious the woman had no idea who she was screwing with. The fact she wasn't a corpse yet was a testament to Aria's patience. He went over to meet with them, only to be held back to a human man dress in a suit, obviously not from Omega but a latest member to Aria's group.

"What's your deal? Aria wants to see me" Shepherd said.

"I know, but you may want to stay away, at least for a little while" He said. "Things are going to be…tense"

"So you admit you and your thugs are here illegally" the immigration officer said.

The asari rolled her eyes in annoyance. "Good job, sweetie and it only took C-sec five months to figure it out" Aria said. "They don't make 'em any dumber, do they?"

The officer frowned. "I don't care who you are …you're required to go through processing like all other refugees. Come with me"

Aria chuckled and looked her up and down. "Unless you have something to offer me, I think I'll stay here" The immigration officer crossed her arms. "You won't stop annoying me, unless I do something will you? Sheerk, get me Tevos"

"Ma'am" the human pressed a button on his omni-tool and an image of Councilor Tevos appeared. Shepherd raised his eyebrows in surprise, the asari representative was on Aria's speed dial, and chances were the other councilors had no idea. Tevos gave a smile, but it was obvious that the councilor was annoyed with her dirty laundry was calling her in the middle of a crowded club.

"Aria, to what I owe the pleasure?"

"I'm being asked to summit to immigration processing, if you could do something about that, Akara…"

"Of course" She pressed a button. "And now you've been processed. Is there anything else?"

Aria smirked. Nothing, Akara, thank you" Tevos nodded and her image faded, the human looked shocked until Aria spoke up.

"I think we're done here…" The officer walked off fuming. "Enjoy the show, Shepherd?"

Shepherd took a seat on the couch. "So the rule applies here too, who would have guessed?"

"I guess so" Aria said. She then frowned. "I hate this place, so sickeningly uptight"

"Really? Didn't seem that way when you were trolling the immigration officer" Shepherd said.

Aria got up and got her drink from the human. "The only thing that makes this place bearable, is that it's so easy to get under their skin"

"So let me guess, the reapers?"

"Close, Cerberus"

"Ouch" Shepherd said. "So how did it happen?"

"They used pictures of human infants, how the fuck you think?" Aria asked.

"Wow, for you to be this bitchy, it must have been that bad…"

Aria scoffed. "I'm glad you find my predicament so fucking amusing…"she said. "But don't worry; The Illusive Man will pay for every second I've spent in the bureaucratic hell hole"

"I'll believe it when I see it, so what do you want?" Shepherd asked.

"Finally serious I see you're here because I have a preposition for you" Aria said. "The way I see it, we're all screwed if the reapers win, doesn't matter where I am"

"It's in my interest to help you"

Shepherd crossed his arms. "Get to the point, Aria"

"On Omega, I was close to securing the loyalty of the Blue Suns, Eclipse, and Blood Pack, until Cerberus ruined it" she explained. "Without me running Omega, they're running amok and nobody wants that"

"Help me finish what I started, and you'll have a powerful and ruthless force for your war" Aria said. "I laid the groundwork you just, to close the deal" Shepherd thought about it, he killed a lot of them during his mission against the collectors. He doubt that they forgotten that, however he couldn't afford to be choosy about it he needed all the allies he could get and they were the biggest powerhouses available until he could get the turians and krogans on board.

"Sounds good, so where do I find them?" Shepherd asked.

"The leader of the Blue Suns is in the refugee area, one of my men Narl is in the presidium dealing with the Blood Pack leader" she said. "As for the leader of the Eclipse, that may be more…complicated…"

"How?"

"I had a deal with Sederis of the Eclipse, but she fucked it up, going on a rampage" she said. "She's in C-sec's custody"

Shepherd raised a brow. "What? Want me to break her out?"

"No, nothing that messy, but from what I have heard you and Bailey are acquaintances….get the picture?"

Shepherd snorted. "You obviously don't know Bailey well, but I'll see what I can do…"

"Let me know when the deal falls through…" Aria said. "I would suggest speaking to Narl; first, he's closest to a deal with the Blood Pack" Shepherd nodded, and left the club.

_**Blood Pack(Presidium Commons)**_

Shepherd to the elevator to the presidium commons to meet with Narl, the spectre wondered why he was needed for this if Aria was close to a deal with the blood pack. Shepherd shook his head, Aria probably need him to bust some heads in case it went bad. He went up to the apartments, despite being the presidium the apartments were like a ghost town due to some people being called to service or trying to find family in the refugee camps which made it perfect for some shady characters. "Let's see…Apartment 86, there we go" When he got in there he was met with a batarian, Narl. "Great, a fucking blink…"

Narl scoffed. "I could say the same thing about you, Butcher…"

Shepherd frowned. "Are we going to have a problem…?"

"Not unless, you make it a problem, ape" he said. "Now hands behind your back, they'll be here any minute, Aria promised you to the Blood Pack leader and he pledges the gang to her"

Shepherd scoffed. "I knew it was too simple…" he said. "Fine, but try anything and I'll pop your eyes like a grape"

"Wouldn't dream of it…" The door opens to reveal three vorchas one of whom was Kreete.

"Aria is more powerful than Kreete thought. Her instructions to board the Citadel were one thing, but this…" he said. He gave a huge toothy grin to Shepherd and got close. The spectre almost wanted the gag, his breath smelled like he ate varren dung that's been sitting in the sun for three weeks, he now knew why vorcha were considered the vermin of the galaxy they had the hygiene of vermin. "Commander Shepherd! Wanted you to know, your head will be hood ornament on personal shuttle"

Shepherd then felt a gun in his hand, he had to fight back urge to pull it on the vorcha. "Back off Keete. So do we have a deal?" Narl asked.

Kreete gave a huge toothy grin, or at least Shepherd thought it was grin, hard to tell since vorcha always to look like grinning morons. "Most definitely, Aria can use Blood Pack as she see fit"

Narl scoffed. "Wasn't talking to you, Kreete, Gryll?"

Kreete looked over to his lieutenant. "What?!"

"You have my word. Now open fire!" Narl and Shepherd raised their gun and shot Kreete and his men in the head.

"So, the deal was with him?"

"Yes, Keete had the unfortunate idea that he could overthrow Aria, so she made a deal with his second-in-command?"

"Yes, yes. I'm Aria's mole, Shepherd. You've scratched my back and now I'll scratch yours"

"Do yourself a favor, don't screw with Aria" Shepherd said.

"I may be ambitious, but I'm not crazy"

"We'll see" Shepherd gave the gun back to Narl. "Thanks for the gun, I guess…"

Narl scoffed. "Whatever…" he said. "Your part's done" Shepherd walked out of the room and opened his com.

"It's done; I'm heading over to the Docks"

_**Blue Suns (Docks: Holding Area)**_

Shepherd made his way over to the holding area of the docks, before the war it was where new cargo was stored for the many businesses on the Citadel. Now with the economy a mess due to the reapers, it has become a camp for refugees which were bigger every day. Shepherd went to the back to meet with Darner Vosque, leader of the blue suns to secure the Blue Suns loyalty. "Wow, Aria wasn't kidding, the Great Commander Shepherd on a leash…"

Shepherd crossed his arms. "You should be careful, Vosque, this dog bites" he said. "What do you want?"

"Straight to the point I see…you can tell Aria I'm impressed, but I still need my problem taken care of"

"And that is?"

"A turian general named Oraka has it out for the Blue Suns, he's being a pain in the ass just because of our little activities in this sector…" Shepherd remembered that name; it was when he was looking evidence to use against Saren. Oraka was a retired general that was drowning his sorrow in Chora's den over being rejected by Sha'ira the Consort until Shepherd told him to clean up and set an example.

"Huh and I'm sure it wasn't your fault too…" Shepherd said sarcastically.

"A smartass huh? Anyway, I'll commit my gang as soon as Oraka is dead"

Shepherd frowned. "No deal, I'm not killing a turian general, not while I need the Hierarchy's help"

"Funny, Aria seems to think you would, why else would she send you?" Vosque asked.

"I'll have to talk to her about that…"

"You do that, my offer still stands" he said walking away. "Oh and tell Aria I still expect her blue ass in bed with me" Shepherd shuddered at that, what was it about merc leaders and being open about their sex life? He opened his comm.

"What is it, Shepherd?"

"Oraka, explain now"

"Ah yes, the shit-storm between the Blue Suns and General Oraka" Aria said. "What you need to do is to stop Oraka from disrupting their operations; how you deal with it I don't really care"

"You could have said something from the beginning" Shepherd said annoyed.

"Vasque need to see you, and needed to realize who he was dealing with" she said. "Plus if I have to suffer from him staring at my tits one more time, I may have to kill the son of a bitch"

"Ugh, he mentioned…"

Aria scoffed. "That I'm going to sleep with him? We all have our delusions" Shepherd shook his head and went to the Presidum to speak with Oraka.

"Commander Shepherd" the turian said. The two men shook hands.

"Good to see you general, you're looking better than you were three years ago" he said.

"You too, so what can I do you for?"

"I hear you're taking on the Blue Suns"

"I'm doing my part; they've raided C-sec weapon shipment. I'm putting a stop to it" Oraka said. "Those mercs are jeopardizing the Citadel's ability when the war comes here"

"I know how you feel, but there are other ways"

"You don't think I tried? There's a black market dealer right near us but he won't sell his top items"

"Let me talk him, I may be able to loosen him up"

Oraka nodded. "Hmm, maybe a spectre will have better luck, than I did, good luck"

Shepherd went over to the Salarian clerk, he frowned when Shepherd approached. "Look Commander, I don't want any trouble. I'm authorized to sell here and my stuff is legal"

"I'm not here for that, give me the good stuff"

"Shit, you slumming for C-sec too?" he asked. "I'll tell you like I told your turian friend I'm not giving it for free"

"So how much?"

Kannik chuckled. "You think I want credits? Look, the Galaxy's going belly up, credits won't mean anything once the reapers rip through" he said. "You give me something worthwhile and maybe I'll think about it" Shepherd glowed blue and lifted the salarian and slammed him on his counter hard.

"You son of a bitch! People, including your own are dying out there, and you won't sell your weapons, because you're greedy?!" he asked angrily. "Let me tell you what you are going to do, you give your top-line weapons to the general without objections and I won't use your body as a piñata, do you understand me, you piece of shit?!"

Kannik nodded quickly and messaged the old general about the weapons. Shepherd dropped him hard on the ground and met with Oraka. "Commander I was just contacted by the dealer, who's donating the weapons to C-sec, what did you do?"

"I just reminded him of his priorities…" Shepherd said. "So the Blue Suns…?"

"Of course, with the weapons we can build up Citadel Defense, it won't bring back Palaven, but…"

"It's all you can do…" Shepherd said sadly.

_**Eclipse**_

Shepherd went to the Embassy to convince Bailey to release Sederis, something Shepherd was still uncomfortable with. Shepherd took a deep breath as he went in, Bailey looked at him as he finished the final paperwork.

"Shepherd need something again?"

"Yeah, I need you to release Jona Sederis…" he said.

"Damn, you too? Someone got the Council order her release, what's your stake in this?"

"It's classified…"

Bailey crossed his arms. "Nice way of saying fuck you…" he said. "Look, there's a reason she's in here, the woman's nuts"

"How crazy are we talking?" Shepherd asked.

"Of the 'calling for the deaths of Eclipse's enemies' kind" Bailey said.

"Oh" Shepherd said simply. "Can I at least see her?"

"Alright, but don't say I didn't warn you" Bailey pressed a button and an image appeared of a dark blue asari. "I'll leave you alone" He left the room and the asari looked back at the camera.

"Who's that spying on me? Ah I see…good. Aria's indentured servant has finally come to deliver me to freedom" Shepherd pinched the bridge of his nose; he was going to have to talk to Aria, about the servant crap she's been spreading.

"Don't get ahead of yourself; I want to talk before I secure your release"

Sederis growled. "Bullshit, you have no choice" she said. "When I get out heads will roll. Oh yes, don't forget you killed a lot of my people"

Shepherd glowed a faint blue. "I would watch it with the threats, I have no problems letting you join your people" he said coldly.

The asari smirked. "You got balls, it's a shame you waste it fighting for the Alliance" she said. "Unlike that little toad, Sayn, my second-in-command, now get me out of here, Shepherd" the image faded.

"Bailey, I've seen enough, you're right she warped in the head" he said. "Let me try to make this problem go away"

"Sounds good, I'll hold the line until then" Shepherd opened his comm.

"Aria, where can I find Sayn?" Shepherd went back to the refugee area and met with Sederis second in command. "Are you Sayn?"

Sayn frowned as he and to turian members got up. "Are you here to cause trouble?"

"No, I'm here to talk about Sederis, leaving her in prison"

Sayn eyes went wide. "Are you crazy? Do you have any idea what she'll do to me if I betray her?"

"She's nuts, the only reason Eclipse still stands is because of you" he said. "You should run Eclipse, make it better"

"But…"

"Trust me, Sederis will rot in prison, and you get to be the leader, win-win" Shepherd said with a smirk. "And the best part: you would be doing Aria a favor, from what I've heard, she's quite annoyed with Sederis"

"Right, right, then that's the plan, keep Sederis in jail…I'll call Aria right away" Shepherd nodded and walked away. His comm beeped.

"Shepherd, the Council withdrew the release for Sideris. Aria T'Loak, of all people, got them to do it. Crazy"

Shepherd shook his head. "You have no idea…"


	22. Chapter 18: Varren's Day out

**Chapter 18: Varren's day out**

_**The Normandy**_

Urz was bored out of his mind, ever since the Normandy escaped Earth; everyone was too busy to play with him. The varren tried to get Tali to play with him but the quarian just ignored him and continued to work on the engines. Shepherd was a no go either; the spectre was either talking to the krogan in red armor and the not-Garrus turian that was on board or was out on missions. Occasionally, he brought something interesting back like those biotic kids and another human plus it was always nice to see Jack and Kelly again. However, that didn't last as they were off the ship as soon they came on. Urz was in the shuttle deck, watching James work out and Cortez work on the shuttle it was interesting for a while until he got bored again. Urz put his head down, he missed the old days, sure there were busy days but at least he wasn't forgotten like now.

Urz raised his head and heard the elevator coming down; Lia came out of the elevator and went to James. She took off her mask and kissed the large human on the lips, the varren never understand the appeal with kissing, for a varren female to be interested in a male a good show of dominance was all that was needed. Urz put his head down; he'll never understand non-varrens. Lia then took James hand and went to the elevator; she then stopped and looked at Urz. "What's wrong, Lola?" James asked.

"Let's bring Urz" Lia said. Urz raised his head and wagged his tail when he heard that, for once was giving him attention. "I'm sure he would love to stretch his legs for once"

"You sure that's a good idea? People are spooked enough already…" James said.

"We'll just watch him and make sure he doesn't go too far" Lia said.

James shrugged his shoulders. "If say so" he said. The large human tapped his leg and the varren happily walked towards them, it looks like it would be so boring after all.

_**The Citadel**_

Before they left, Lia asked Shepherd if Urz could come, the varren was worried at first, because if the spectre had said no, he wouldn't have any choice but to stay, Shepherd was his master after all. Surprisingly enough he let them go as long James and Lia kept him out of trouble. As soon as they made to the airlock a rush of new smells entered the varren's nose, he had never smelled so many things before, all he has known was smell of metal on the Normandy or the dank smell of krogan and rotting pyjak corpses on Tuchanka.

The first place they went to was the presidium for something to eat, as they walked to the diner, people were staring at them. Urz didn't mind it as much; he was more focused on getting something to eat however Lia flinched a little from the looks until James gripped her hand. A man came up and frowned at the people at the door, Urz growled a little at this man he sensed hostility from him. "Sorry, we're full…"

James looked behind the man and saw over a dozen empty seats. The large human crossed his arms and narrowed his eyes. "Don't look like it to me…"

"They're reserved" The owner said curtly. "You can have the seat outside…in the back…where no one can see you" James frowned and was about to wring the man's neck. He couldn't believe it, the galaxy was burning and this jackass was worried about who sat in his diner. Lia grabbed his arm, and shook her head.

"Come on, Jimmy, it's not worth it…" She said. James calmed down and narrowed his eyes at the man.

"You're lucky, pendejo…my girlfriend just save you from the ass-beating of a lifetime…" They walked out of the diner.

"So sorry for the inconvenience" he said in contempt. He then smelled something rancid and looked down; Urz had left a little surprise while he and James were talking. He yelled in disgust and covered his nose, so did the other patrons in the diner. The owner may have won the battle, but it was at a cost, a very messy cost that now required some bleach and air fresheners. The couple and Urz soon found a place that was a bit civil to them, in fact the owner gave them a discount on their meals due to one fact…she absolutely adored varrens. The food that he ate was great, the varren had never had anything so rich before, as much as he liked the food on the Normandy there was only so much varren food he could eat before he got tired of it.

"Whoo…Damn I don't think I can eat anymore…" James said sitting back in his chair.

"Yeah…" Lia said.

James gripped her hand. "Hey, what wrong Lola…?" he asked.

Lia lowered her head. "I just gotten news from Terra Nova…." She said sadly. "The city of Armitage, was wiped out by the reapers….the commune where I was born…was near that city…" James now understood why Lia wanted to go out, it was to keep her mind off the possibility that her home and her people were possibly gone. "I haven't heard anything from the Elder; I suppose I should grateful…after all no news is better than bad news but still…"

"I'm sure they got off the planet, Lia…"

"Maybe, but I somehow doubt it…" Lia said. "We have shuttles but not enough to take everyone off the planet" Lia sighed, the report was even grimmer than that, after the reapers landed on the planet the seventh and eighth fleet of the Alliance fought to keep the plant but quickly fell. Reaper troops killed and capture people city by city until the remnant of the splintered fleets abandoned it to regroup with allies. "Jimmy, I'm scared…" Urz licked her hand and rubbed against it, Lia pat the varren on the head, it made her feel better at least a little.

"Lola, I'm not sure what more I can say…" James said softly. "I'm in the same boat as you, my uncle is still on Earth and Phoenix just stopped checking in…the writing on the walls says he's dead or worse but I have to keep hoping that he's alright and we'll see each other again"

James sat close to her and Lia leaned her head into his shoulder. "I hope you're right…" she said.

_**The Normandy**_

Shepherd was in the conference room, massaging the sides of his head while he was watching Wrex and Victus go at it. Shepherd started to wonder if he should have tag along with Lia and James earlier. "You have the female, Wrex. A cure for the rest of your people can come later" Victus said.

Victus had just gotten the casualty report from Palaven, and it was not good, the reapers were pushing the turians back on Menae and the casualties on the planet itself were in the millions. The reapers were using turian's own MO against them, destroying the enemy with overwhelming force and they were deadly efficient. Wrex crossed his arms and frowned. "That wasn't the deal"

Victus growled in frustration. "But Palaven needs your people now! We can't delay!"

"Unless every krogan gets the cure, there's no deal!" Mordin came in, Shepherd sighed hopefully the doctor had something.

"Mordin, oh thank god! Please tell me you have an update on the cure" He said.

"Cure coming along fine, Shepherd, need to synthesize base antigen from female, also need sample of healthy male tissue"

"You're looking at him" Wrex said.

"Excellent, will need you in med-bay"

"How much longer until it's done?" Shepherd asked. "Please say it's soon…" Mordin sniffed, the spectre sighed, and a long-winded explanation was coming.

"Working against own alterations, not as simple as garbage DNA blocking attachment sites" Mordin said. "Will need to counteract shutdown of redundant nervous system, adjust neurotransmitter levels…."

"Okay I get it, not done yet" Shepherd said.

Mordin nodded and smiled. "Will create cure Shepherd. Don't need to worry" Shepherd nodded and Mordin walked out of the room. Wrex walked out of the room and followed Mordin and Victus walked to the War Room.

"Commander…" Shepherd looked back. "There's a small matter of a ship that went missing, come see me soon" Shepherd nodded, he walked to the CIC to catch the elevator where he saw James, Lia, and Urz coming in. The varrren came in and jumped Shepherd licking his face, usually he would stop him, but after recruiting criminals to the cause and playing peacekeeper between Wrex and Victus this was the least of his problems.

"Hey guys, had fun?" Lia and James looked at each other.

"I guess…"

"How was Urz? He didn't cause too much trouble did he?" Urz looked at the Spectre like he just insulted him.

"No just fine Loco" James said.

Shepherd sighed. "Good, we're about leave get to your stations" James and Lia saluted.

"Aye-Aye!"


	23. Chapter 19: Moving On

**Chapter 18: Moving On**

_**The Normandy**_

It was the middle of the night and as usual Kaiden couldn't sleep, due to thinking about the war, and since he couldn't get to sleep, it triggered his headaches. He got up and went to the med-bay where Dr. Chakwas was up reading, she had agreed to watch Eve while the Mordin got some rest, she heard her door open and saw Kaiden walked in. The doctor got up and took out some extra strength painkillers for the major. He had gotten a better hold on his headaches, due to living with them for so long, but sometimes it got when he least expected.

"Thanks doc, sorry to bother you this late"

Chakwas smiled. "It's not a problem; I'm a doctor 24/7, besides I see you as my children"

Kaiden chuckled. "Thanks, mom" He walked out of the room and took his pain meds; thankfully they worked fast as his headache was settling down. As he was about to turn the corner to his quarters, out of the side of his eyes Kaiden saw a light in the corner of the deck. The spectre thought it was just one of the skeleton crew taking a break, until he heard a man talking and some faint crying. Kaiden went to check it out.

_"Robert behind you!" _

_"NO!"_

_"Steve stay away! Get those civilians away from here!"_

_"But..."_

_"Get them out of here Steve, I'll…I'll give you time to escape"_

_"No don't…"_

_"I love you, but I know you, don't make me an anchor" _

"_Please, I want you to move on, be happy; don't waste your life mourning me…"_

_"My life is nothing without you, you're my life, please don't do this to me!"_

_"Nonononono! Robert!"_

_"I love you, Steve…always"_

Kaiden came to the corner of the crew deck; now that he was closer he saw who it was…it was Cortez sitting in the corner, sobbing at a recording. "Cortez…?"

Cortez jumped up, quickly wiping the tears from his eyes. "O-oh, Kaiden, I-I'm sorry to bother you…" He closed the recording and got up, Kaiden grabbed his arm and Cortez faced him. "You're not bothering me, but are you okay?" He asked concerned.

"I…"

"If you don't want to talk, I won't force you, I was just worried" Cortez tears flowed more and sobbed into Kaiden's shoulder. Kaiden blushed, but held him tightly as he let it out. After a while Cortez calmed down, his face was still red and puffy, and his eyes showed a deep sadness. Since his talks with the pilot, Cortez always seem so together, to see him break was new to him.

"I…I'm sorry, Major, that was unprofessional" Cortez said.

Kaiden shook his head and dried his tears. "Don't be, you're one of us" he said softly. The two men sat a while in the darkness, not saying anything, Kaiden really wanted to ask what was wrong but he made it his motto to never force these things. He's saw too often how much it hurt people, like his first boyfriend back at Jump Zero, he had pushed Aiden to talk about his training with Vyrnmus before he was ready. Kaiden thought he was helping him cope, but instead he made the fresh wound worse and a week later, it had cost him his life.

"Aren't you going to ask, why I was crying?" Cortez asked.

The Major placed a hand on his shoulder. "Cortez, it's too painful I understand…" Kaiden said. "When you want to talk, I'll listen"

The pilot knew Kaiden was trying to be nice, but for the sake of the mission he couldn't let his personal problems get in the way. Cortez hesitated and took a deep breath. "Today is the one year anniversary of my husband's death" he said sadly. "That recording was…his last words to me…"

"Cortez, I'm so sorry…" Kaiden said.

"I never even had the chance to say goodbye…."

"You were talking to him when the Collectors attacked?"

"Talking to him? He was right there near me" Cortez said bitterly.

_**Ferris Fields-a year ago**_

___Ferris Fields was a colony in the Terminus Systems, the planet had a very beautiful tropical environment which made it a huge tourist attraction, and however it was also a huge target for pirates and slavers. Luckily, the colony was one of the few in the Terminus Systems that gotten along with the Alliance and because of that had a huge presence on the colony which was how Cortez and Robert came here. When they were stationed to the colony, Cortez and Robert had thought they had found a place where they could build a life._That was until the Collectors came…Robert and Cortez was ordered to evaluate the colonists while the soldiers tried to fight them off. However the Alliance underestimated how strong the Collectors were and was soon overrun. Meanwhile the Collectors had Robert and Cortez surrounded, the civilians ran for the shuttle the civilians Cortez was driving while Robert was protecting it. However some of them were either paralyzed by the seeker swarms or gunned down by the Collectors. Several of the Collectors surrounded a family until Robert mowed them down with is assault rifle. More were coming as Robert gave the colonists time to get on the shuttle.

_"Robert, they're all on board! Get in"_

_"On my way!" He said. Robert shot more of the Collectors and then ran for the Shuttle. More of the Collectors flew in, with one of them starting to glow yellow._

_"YOU PROLONG THE INEVITABLE! ASCENSION AWAITS!" The Collector started to glow._

_"Robert behind you!" Cortez yelled. Robert looked back to counterattack, but the yellow energy hit Robert in the chest hard, he fell to the ground. "NO!" The collectors were closing in on Robert; Cortez ran to gun rack and grabbed a rifle._

_"Steve, stay away! Get those civilians out of here!" He said in pain._

_"But..." Robert got off the ground and went to cover. He shot several of the collectors, trying to keep them from the shuttle. More kept coming; if this kept up there would be no escape for all of them. Robert then became eerily calm, he knew what he had to do._

_"Get them out of here Steve, I'll…I'll give you time to escape"_

_"No don't…" Cortez said._

_"I love you, but I know you, don't make me an anchor" Robert said. "Please, I want you move on, be happy, don't waste your life mourning me…"_

_"My life is nothing without you, you're my life, please don't do this to me!" Cortez said in tears. It pained Robert to hear him say that, but he knew that he had to get them out of there; Cortez would stay there for him, he couldn't let that happen. Robert opened his omni-tool and activated the autopilot for the shuttle. "Nonononono! Robert!"_

_"I love you, Steve…always" The shuttle flew away, leaving Cortez's husband to his fate. One of the collectors fired and got Robert in the shoulder, and the soldier fell back in the mud as the Collectors kept on advancing. He saw the seeker swarms flying towards his husband's location._

_"ROBERT, ROBERT!" Cortez said banging on the doors. He then saw light and smoke…over near Robert's location, Cortez just watched as walked back to wall as he slumped on the wall with tears in his eyes. One of the civilians came close to him and put his hand on Cortez's shoulder, and then another until he finally broke down, crying in anguish over the loss of his husband._

Kaiden lowered his head. "I'm sorry for your loss, he cared for you right until the end" he said sadly.

Tears flowed from Cortez's eyes, and he took a deep breath so he wouldn't cry again, Kaiden rubbed his shoulder. "He was afraid I wouldn't let go, but for him, I moved on…or…or at least I tried…" he said. "Then the invasion hits, there's no time and the first time I grab is this?"

Cortez gave a humorless laugh. "I mean what's the point of moving on, when everything is going to hell?" he asked. "When we're going to die, anyway…"

Kaiden frowned. "Start thinking that way and we've already lost"

Cortez chuckled sadly. "You sound just like Robert; he'd throttle me if he heard me right now…" he said. "I know you're right, but to be honest. I've never felt as alone as I do now…"

Kaiden placed a hand on his shoulder. "You're not alone, Steve, I…we're here for you, anytime"

Cortez smiled a little. "I appreciate that, Kaiden. I really do" he said. "Don't worry, I won't let you down, I'm with you 100%"

"It's just the downtime between missions, you know?"

"I know" Kaiden then looked at his omni-tool, it was close to morning, they had talked all night. "Look at the time, we get some rest"

Cortez looked at his omni-tool. "My god you're right…I…guess I'll see you later then" Kaiden got off the floor and took Cortez's hand as he pulled him off the floor. He then smiled. "Good night Kaiden…"

"You too, Cortez"

"Steve"

Kaiden looked back. "Excuse me?"

Cortez blushed a little. "I…I don't mind you calling me Steve, I…I mean it's only fair since I call you by your first name…"

Kaiden smiled. "Okay…Steve it is then…Good night Steve"

_**The Next Day**_

Kaiden headed to the mess hall for some breakfast, for some reason he felt refreshed more than usual.. "Hey Kasumi" Kaiden said. His friend raised a brow at his chipper tone, Kaiden was not what you called a chipper person, he could smile yes but he wasn't the type to show much emotion. For this to happen, Kaiden must have been in a really good mood, she wondered what happened.

"Well someone's happy this morning"

"Of course I'm happy; my headache is gone for one"

As Kaiden continued talking, Kasumi saw Cortez behind him getting food and he had the same dopey smile on his face as Kaiden. Kasumi gave a sly smirk. "Uh-huh…"

Kaiden frowned. "What with that look?"

"Well don't look now, but Cortez is coming your way" Kaiden straightened out and looked around and saw him walking towards him. "Hey, Cortez"

"Hey Kasumi" Cortez said. He then blushed seeing Kaiden. "Hi Kaiden…" he said bashfully. "You don't mind if I sit here, do you?"

Kaiden blushed back. "Uh n…no…" Cortez sat next to Kasumi. The breakfast between the three of them was awkward to say the least, with Kaiden and Cortez trying their best not to make eye contact. When they reached for the same thing and touched hands, they shot back and continued the no contact breakfast. They would talk at times but it always seem strained Kasumi blinked as she looked at them, it was starting to seem like less a breakfast and more like an awkward first date. After a while Cortez finished first and got out of there, getting to work, allowing Kaiden to breathe a breath of relief.

"Uh, what the hell was that?" Kasumi asked.

"What do you mean? Just breakfast between friends…" he said still blushing.

Kasumi raised a brow. "Breakfast between friends doesn't include not making eye contact and avoiding each other's hands" she said. "So spill…"

"I…I don't know, you see we were up last night" Kasumi's eyes lit up. "And before you put your mind in the gutter, it wasn't like that" he said annoyed. "We were just talking that's all" Kaiden wished that was all, because as soon as he went to his quarters to sleep, he had dreams of Cortez. He had thought he was just helping Cortez, but something opened in him…he shook his head, it couldn't be…could he developing feelings for him? Kasumi seemed to think so as she has a smirk on her face.

"You have a crush on him…"

Kaiden blushed. "I…we…uh…" he stammered. The major lowered his shoulder in defeat. "I guess so…"

Kasumi squealed like a schoolgirl. "So cute, go talk to him!"

Kaiden lowered his head. "I…can't, not right now…it wouldn't be right…" Kasumi tilted her head, it was obvious they liked each other but it wasn't until Kaiden explain last night to her that she started to understand.

"I see…poor Cortez…" Kasumi said sadly. "I know how it feels, to lose someone you love"

The major sighed. "I do like him and I want to help" Kaiden said. "But..."

"You're not sure what the right way…is" The major nodded. "Just be there for him, and when he's ready, he'll come around"

_**Cargo bay**_

Cortez couldn't focus on his work; his mind was preoccupied with thoughts of Kaiden, he tried shaking it off, but there was no denying it, he was developing feelings for the spectre. On the one hand, he liked Kaiden, he was kind, noble, and cute but on the other hand it felt like such a betrayal to his husband. A voice spoke up.

"Uh, Esteban are you going press that one button all day?"

"Huh?" He looked down and found James was right. "Oh, I see"

James raised a brow. "You okay? It's not like you to be distracted"

"Just thinking…"

James chuckled. "About Slim….?" Cortez blushed.

"How did you know?" he asked.

"Well, I noticed you two spending lots of time with each other lately and you seemed so happy"

Cortez lowered his head. "It doesn't seem right…"

"That you're happy?"

The pilot shook his head. "That I'm…"

James held out his hand. "Stop right there…you're not betraying Roberto" he said firmly. "He would be happy that you're with a new guy, plus Slim's a good guy, a bit stiff, but a good guy" James put his hand on his shoulder. "Esteban, you're like an older brother to me, and it hurts me to see you like this" he said. "Just because you're with Slim, doesn't mean you have to forget about Roberto's love for you, so go for it, and live your life, man"

The PA sounded. "Cortez, report to the shuttle, Commander Shepherd is preparing his ground team"

"Just, think about it okay?" After a while on the Shuttle, Cortez started to think about what James had said. Usually he was the one to give the advice when they were kids, but he had admit he was right, it needs to let go, maybe once the mission was over he would act on it. The hatched open and Shepherd, Garrus and Kaiden entered, Kaiden and Cortez stared at each other and blushed.

"Cortez ready?" Shepherd asked.

"Huh, uh…yeah, ready Commander" Cortez gave Kaiden a good luck look. Kaiden smiled and gave him a thankful look. The shuttle moved out of the Normandy, for their next mission.

Meanwhile, James looked on as the shuttle flew to the planet. "Good luck hermano…"

_**I would like your opinion on this chapter, and yes this is my first time writing a gay romance, so I feel this isn't one of my best chapters, any way review and comment on your thoughts.**_


	24. Chapter 20: A Soldier's Worth Act 1

**Chapter 20: A Soldier's Worth Act1**

_**The Shuttle**_

The team was making their way to the surface of Tuchanka, Shepherd stood up to give his team a debriefing on the mission. Primarch Victus spoke to him earlier about a turian platoon that the Hierarchy lost contact with. Shepherd found it strange that the turians were on Tuchanka especially when Palaven desperately needed all the soldiers they could get. When the spectre asked, Victus simply said it was classified and a matter of galactic peace, whatever it was it must have been bad. "Sir, we got the crash site on-screen" Cortez said.

Shepherd walked up to the cockpit, the site was a mess with remnants of the platoon's ship scattered among the rubble of Tuchanka's ruined landscape. The sensors were beeping as they approached the site; it read multiple harvesters inbound, Wrex were right about reaper scouts on his planet and now the turian platoon was in the middle of a huge mess. "Damn, the crash site's a nightmare" he said. "EDI, try to raise Lieutenant Victus"

Lieutenant Taquin Victus, leader of the ninth platoon and son of the Primarch, another complication Shepherd's team had to deal with. EDI's blue avatar appeared. "Yes, sir" Garrus walked up next to him.

Garrus frowned. "For a turian commander, what happened here is…let's just say the turian code is not forgiving" he said. "The fact it's the Primarch's son is worse…promoting family without merit can bite you in the ass"

"What's strange is that the Primarch knows that" Cortez spoke up.

"Commander. I have to land well back from the main crash site" he said.

Shepherd looked at him. "That's the best you can do?"

"Yes sir, but the reapers seem unaware of our presence…"

"A pre-emptive strike for our side for once" Kaiden said.

Shepherd nodded. "Alright land this bird" Cortez nodded and landed the shuttle, Shepherd and Garrus jumped out. Kaiden was about to jump next until Cortez spoke up.

"Kaiden" the spectre looked back.

Cortez blushed. "…Good luck"

Kaiden smiled. "Thanks…" he jumped down and met up with Shepherd and Garrus. The area was a huge maze of rubble, flames, and twisted metal from former buildings. It was going to be tricky getting to the Lieutenant's men especially with reaper troops possibly slowing them down.

Shepherd raised his com. "EDI, speak to me" he said. "Lieutenant Victus?"

"Yes, but the connection is bad" she said. "Patching you through"

"This Commander Shepherd, Alliance Navy. Do you read?" The comm was full static before a voice came through.

"This is Lieutenant…Victus of the ninth plat... ..'re pinned by Reaper Harves… and taking hea…casualties" he said. "My men are….scatt…along crash…jecterory"

"What was that?" Shepherd asked. "Damn…the connection…."

"Garrus, do turian soldiers carry something if the distress beacon is damaged?" Kaiden asked.

"A flare… Shepherd ask Victus to fire a flare and we can follow it" Garrus said. Shepherd nodded.

"Lieutenant, I need you to fire a flare so I can find your position…" Shepherd said. All they could hear was static. "Come on…" The team looked in the sky, so far there was nothing, but then something rose to the sky and exploded in the sky with a deep red. The com came in clearer this time.

"She….things are getting worse by….the minute….men dying…" the connection was cut.

"That sounds bad…" Garrus said.

"Let's move…" The team went down the path, staying on guard.

Garrus shook his head. "This looks worse than I feared" he said. The team proceeded forward and used an old emergency ladder to go up. They went forward until they saw three grey figures among the rubble. The team went into cover and looked over and saw three husks devouring what looks like a turian in black and red armor, one of Victus' men.

"Ugh, sick…" Kaiden said grimly. The husks didn't seem to notice them, which meant they had the element of surprise. Shepherd counted down on his fingers, Garrus took out his sniper rifle and took out the husk on the left. The other two noticed them now and charged the team but Shepherd and Kaiden gunned them down, killing them quickly. They moved to the next area, Garrus noticed something and went to check it out. Shepherd and Kaiden followed the turian and saw him examine the wreckage.

"Garrus?" Shepherd asked.

Garrus sighed and shook his head. "Escape pod, three casualties, survived the crash, but then Harvester took out the pod"

"Died in the explosion?" Kaiden asked.

"No, look at the ground and then the marks on these men…"Garrus said grimly. "They got out of the pod only to be eaten by husks…"

Shepherd closed his eyes and sighed. "Let's continue on…we can't help the dead…" They then heard sounds of battle from their left. "Shit…gunfire, let's move!"

They continued forward and took cover, Kaiden looked over cover. "I got visual on the enemy, Wayne and a turian pod just ahead. The turians are locked down" Shepherd nodded and used his singularity field to lift them up, and Kaiden shut them down with his reave. The Cannibals took noticed and started to attack them, one of them threw a grenade at them and the team scattered. One of the Cannibals tried to flank the team but Garrus knocked down the approaching Cannibals with his concussive shot and then shot them with his assault rifle. When the Cannibals were all died, the team heard a large mechanical screech, and a harvester landed. The worm necks started to attack the turians.

"Shit, boss!" Garrus said. Shepherd took out Hydra and ran towards the next cover. Shepherd locked on the Harvester and fired. The multiple missiles kept pelting the Harvesters until the glowed red and exploded. When the dust cleared, the soldiers were okay, battered but okay.

"Thank you" one of the soldiers said.

"Are you going to be alright?" Shepherd asked.

"Don't stop for us. We'll head to the crash site" he said. "Commander there's another pod up ahead" Shepherd nodded and the team went on their way, they climbed a ladder to the right until they came to a ledge that went down. The team watched their step and went into a corridor area.

"I'm glad we were able to help" Kaiden said.

"Yeah, I am too, let's keep moving. We need to find that crash site" Shepherd said.

As they kept going they found more dead turians, Garrus shook his head. "Being the son of Adrian Victus is a lot to live up to" Garrus said. "Victus is a huge name on Palaven, ever since the unification war, war is expected to run in the Victus blood"

"I can see how it would be rough, to come from long line like that…" The team went down a hole, as they approached Shepherd stopped and held up his hand. "You hear that?" Shepherd asked. Kaiden and Garrus stopped talking and they heard growling and screams. The team ran to the next area and found the next pod being attacked by Marauders and Cannibals. They didn't notice the team like before. "Looks like we got the jump"

"Let's make it count" Shepherd said taking control of the Cannibals. The controlled Cannibals fired on its own side and its allies respond in kind. Kaiden overloaded the Marauders' shields while stunning the Cannibals near it. Garrus shot the cannibals in the head, killing them.

"Heads up! Harvester in coming!" The worm necks descended on the field. Shepherd took out his heavy weapon and fired. The Harvester launched pods on the field as Shepherd kept firing the Hydra, until the worm neck fell. Meanwhile, Kaiden and Garrus faced off against the husks, and Marauders that emerged from the pod. The Marauders hands glowed red and the husks were enhanced with red shelling making them durable against bullets. Shepherd overloaded the marauders shields and killed them before they could enhance each other. Kaiden dodged a swipe to the face from a husk and kicked it back, he then glowed blue and enveloped it in his reave. He then froze it, making explode it. Garrus loaded his armor-piercing ammo into his gun and blasted the red shelling clear off the husk and then took its head off with a concussive shot. Once they were all dead, they called the turians.

"Thanks for the help, we'll rendezvous at the crash site" Shepherd and team went down the slope into a long hallway of rubble Shepherd's com opened.

"Do you read, Commander? Repeat: can you read?" Victus asked.

"Yeah, I'm here, what's your status?"

"We're in deep! Commander what's your ETA?"

"We're on our way, hang tight" Garrus then called him, Shepherd went to him where he had a black device. "What's up?"

"A flight recorder, we can find out what happened." He said activating his omni-tool.

"_Marnek. How's our velocity?"_

"_Deceleration online. We'll survive"_

_The turian growled. "Victus is going to pay for this"_

_The other turian scoffed. "Court martial of hanging?"_

"The Lieutenant won't be able to live this down and then there's his father…" Garrus said.

"Let worry about that when we find him" Shepherd said. The com came in.

"Commander, come in…"

"Shepherd here…"

"Just saw a Harvester drop a lot of enemies your way" Victus said.

"Thanks for the heads up…" Shepherd said. "You heard the man keep your eyes peeled" They then were taking fire and went to cover. Kaiden froze some Cannibals and Shepherd shattered with his incineration blast.

"Wayne Harvester!" Kaiden said. The Harvester then fired at them and the team took cover. "This is bad, we're pinned down" Shepherd looked around the battlefield and saw a Black star on the ground.

Shepherd activated his tech armor and ran out of cover, as the husks and the Harvester fired at him, he rolled and grabbed the Blackstar and went into cover. "Garrus, Kaiden get the small fries off me" They nodded and fired on the Cannibals and Marauders, while Shepherd charged the weapon.

As the Harvester charged it's weapon, Shepherd pulled the trigger and a red burst of light not only erased the worm neck, but also the husks surrounding it, as the dust cleared, nothing was left standing. Garrus and Kaiden joined him. "It's a good thing we're giving those out to the Alliance" Kaiden said.

"You said it, let's go" The team went down the slope.

"Wayne, this seems way too fishy, shouldn't we let the Krogan in on this?" Kaiden asked. "It's their planet after all…"

Garrus shook his head. "Bad idea, Krogan-turian animosity is ancient and intense…it's inborn…"

"I need them to work together, so let's not complicate things" They then heard shouting and gunfire. "Shit, let's move!"

"With you Wayne!"

"For Palaven!" Garrus yelled. They moved forward as the harvester drops off a brute and several waves of cannibals and marauders. Shepherd and Kaiden froze the brute to slow down the Brute, as Garrus took down the marauders and cannibals with his sniper rifle.

"More incoming!" More pods were dropped from the sky as the battle gotten more intense and brutal. "Boss, brute!" The brute broke free and charged at the team, causing them to dodge it out of cover and right into the Harvester range, as it landed watching the battle from afar. The worm neck husk charges it weapon and fires.

"Shit!" The worm neck was charging up its weapon and prepared to fire, and there was nowhere the team to go.

"Wayne, it was an honor fighting with you…" Kaiden said grimly. "You too, Garrus"

"Likewise…." Just as they were waiting for the fire, the Harvester was pelted by missiles from the turian soldiers. The worm neck stopped firing and changed targets allowing Shepherd and team to get to cover. The Harvester was about to fire on turian soldiers, until a brute tackled the Harvester with great force, causing the husk to misfire and hit some of the Cannibals and Marauders.

"Victus, you and your men get to better cover, I won't be able to hold the brute for long" The turian nodded and changed positions, as Shepherd's control of the brute expired and the brute went into frenzy.

"I think you pissed it off, boss…"

"No shit, move!" The large husk plowed through anything in its way, whether it was debris or even its own allies, the brute was going to get the team. "Kaiden, on three we freeze this son of a bitch, three!" Kaiden and Shepherd used their cryo blasts to slow the brute to a crawl. Garrus knocked it back with his concussive shot, the brute landed on the ground hard, Shepherd took the time to take control of the enemies around the brute, and the husks opened fire on the downed brute.

"Commander, Harvester, is targeting you" Shepherd and team ran away and got into cover, the harvester's blast hit the spot where the husks and the brute was and when the smoke cleared nothing was left, but a crater. The team had to kill the Harvester fast they were running out of cover fast.

"Victus come in!" Shepherd said on his comm.

"I read you Commander"

"How are you on ammo?" he asked.

"Almost out, we have plenty of heavy weapons though" Victus said.

Shepherd nodded. "Good, I'll need help taking down the worm neck…" he said. "You in?"

"Of course, it will be an honor to help you" he said. "Commnader, more husks, reinforements!"

"Wayne, me and Garrus got this, you focus on the Harvester" Shepherd nodded and brought out his hydra and got into position, he could see Victus and his men in position also. They opened fired on the worm neck and the Harvester fired back. Meanwhile, Kaiden was taking out the Cannibals with his biotics, while Garrus' proximity mines took out the husks that got close to the duo; he then took care of the Marauders by sniper rifle.

Shepherd's com opened. "Boss! Incoming brute heading your way!" Garrus said.

"Keep them off of us!"

"On it!" The comm closed. Shepherd was hitting it with his missiles but the worm neck's armor was tougher than the spectre though.

"Shit, at this point, I'll run out of missiles before I kill this thing…" he muttered as he saw the Harvester charging his weapon. He then had an epiphany and contacted Victus.

"Yes, Commander…?"

"You see that red glow?"

"Yes, what about it?" Victus asked.

"Hit it with everything you got…" Shepherd said. "And don't stop until its dead…"

"Yes, sir!" The turians and Shepherd opened fired on the worm neck's charging weapon, each missile hitting it until the core crack from the strain, and the Harvester started to glow red, Shepherd and the turians got down as the Harvester exploded in a brilliant red light, as the smoke cleared, they saw the worm neck was no more.

"Garrus and Kaiden how are you on your end?" Shepherd asked.

"Enemy down…finally…" Garrus said in relief. Shepherd chuckled tiredly, his com the opened.

"Commander, this is Victus, come meet us at this point"

"Got it" Shepherd and the team came to meet Victus and his men, they looked as tired as his team did. "Lieutenant Victus?"

Victus looked at him and jumped down along with the rest of his men. "Commander, my men and I are in your debt…" he said . "Thank you for saving so many" he then saw Garrus and saluted. "Valkarian sir…"

"Glad to see you're okay, now what the hell happened here, Victus?" Garrus asked.

One of his men grabbed, Victus' collar, his eyes radiated with pure hatred for his leader. "He screwed up!" he growled.

Victus frowned. "Stand down, soldier!"

"Like hell!" he said angrily. "Our comrades are dead because of you!"

"I said stand down!"

Shepherd gave a loud whistle and the turians stopped, mostly because they didn't understood the sound coming out of his mouth. "I just saved all ya'lls' asses, so everyone calm the fuck down!" Victus' men looked hard at the lieutenant and pushed him away and went to the rest of the squad. Victus looked away and gave a frustrated hiss. "Now what happened?"

"I made a bad call; this is all on me…" Victus said bitterly. "I chose caution and clever tactics over a head on attack and my men paid the price"

"You mean the crash?" Kaiden asked,

Victus nodded. "We could see on the halo that reaper forces were blocking our intended path, staying on guaranteed heavy casualties" he said. "So I chose a safer route, which took us low into these ruins. When we encountered resistance, there was no room to maneuver"

"Suddenly, we were in the fight for our lives. A lot of men lost that fight"

"I see, owning your mistakes take guts, but you have to get over it and move on" Shepherd said.

"Of course…it's just fresh right now" Victus said. "Our mission's still a failure. When we've stabilized the injured, we'll head back to the fleet"

"You're abandoning your mission?" Kaiden asked.

"We'll down over thirty men, it'd be suicide"

"Lieutenant, what was your mission?" Garrus asked.

Victus sighed. "There's a bomb on the planet. We were sent to defuse it"

Shepherd frowned. "A bomb? How big?"

"Enormous. Cerberus has it" Victus then explained that bomb was in a populated area known as the Kelphic Valley. The Primarch was right, this was a matter of galactic peace, if that bomb went off in the Valley the krogan would want blood. Wrex wouldn't be able to stop them, and the reapers would use that to take Tuchanka, not to mention no help for Palaven meant Earth was a goner.

"Lieutenant, if Cerberus has the bomb, you can't just leave, you have to finish the mission" Shepherd said.

"Haven't these men sacrificed enough?"

"I get it, but you men signed on for this mission and so did you"

Victus sighed. "My men have lost hope, Commander. Even if I wanted to finish the mission, they don't"

"It's your job to make them, appeal to their honor, and remind them that if the mission fails, the sacrifices of today will be in vain" Shepherd said.

Victus hesitated, but nodded and faced his men. His men glared at him, but otherwise listened to him. It would take some time for Victus to reclaim their loyalty but it was better to start now than later. "Men! I own what happened here today, but we must carry on"

One of the soldiers scoffed. "No we don't. Who cares about a few dead krogan? It's over"

"We are turian and we will not let Cerberus succeed, our sacrifice is the difference between life and death for this entire galaxy!" he said. "Let the heroes of the Ninth be remembered for preforming their duties with bravery!"

The turians looked at each other and muttered among each other. They then stood up and saluted. Victus nodded. "All right men! Shuttles are arriving any minute…we're moving out"

"Sir!"

"Commander? Come with us" he said. "We're a shell of what we were…we could use the help"

Shepherd nodded. "You've got it" he said. "Send me a nav-point"

"Thank you, give us time to do some recon, see what we're up against" Victus said.

"Lieutenant, you have a second chance here, make it count"

"Understood, we'll see you soon…" Victus said walking away.

_**The Normandy**_

Shepherd was back, giving Admiral Hackett a briefing on the mission, his face said it all something was bothering him. "Cerberus bomb? What the hell is going on and what does the turians have to do about it?"

"Victus gave me the place, the Kelphic Valley, it's heavily populated, but that's all I know"

Hackett frowned. "Something's not right…."

"What do you suggest?" Shepherd asked.

"Talk to the primarch, get him to come clean" Hackett said.

"And the krogan?"

"I'd wait, we're too much in the dark as it is" he said. "Until the genophage is cured, relations between the turians and the krogans are fragile at best, let's not push it"

"And the bomb? How troops do Cerberus have on this?"

"No idea, all I know is, we can't have them detonating that bomb" Shepherd said.

"Agreed, keep me updated. Hackett out" Shepherd came out, to confront the Primarch.

"Primarch"

"Impressive Shepherd, I'm grateful for…"

"Why didn't you tell me about Cerberus having a bomb?" Shepherd asked. "Why hide it?"

"I have nothing for you…" Victus said.

"Really? The 'it's classified' bullshit again" Shepherd said with a frown. "How can I trust you if you're willing to hide a fucking bomb from me?"

Victus sighed. "Our friendship is new, Commander, would you trust me with Intel that puts your people and Earth at risk?"

"Why would I lie to you now, especially when I need you?" he asked. "It doesn't make sense"

"Decisions weigh heavily on me. When I was general, I could pass it to the chain of command, but now I'm all I got…" Primarch Victus said. "Know what I mean?"

"And…?"

"And…that's all" The PA sounded.

"Commander, Cerberus is abducting civilians on Benning…" Traynor said.

"Right" he said walking away.

"Wait, Commander, this may not mean anything, but thank you for saving my son"

"I'll trust you for now, and hope for you sake, this doesn't bite you in the ass later…" Shepherd said. "I don't enjoy being screwed with…" He walked away.

"Noted, Commander…."


	25. Chapter 21: Regrets

**Chapter 21: Regrets**

_Benning was once a thriving human colony, but the Reapers have rounded up a large portion of the populace for processing. Some pockets of civilian resistance still elude the Reapers, however, and rescue attempts are underway. A "resistance radio" established during the early days of the attack continues to broadcast, exhorting survivors to band together and discussing rumors of safe havens. Unfortunately, these rumors have begun to result in ambushes, increasing the desperation of those who remain free._

_Through all this, Benning's automated agricultural systems have continued to operate, leading to unprecedented stores of food in the planet's granaries and warehouses.-Codex_

Miranda gave a deep sigh, she was going to the planet where her sister was abducted, she knew her mission, but that didn't make it any less painful. She then felt her hand being gripped, it Jacob giving her his usual 'it'll be alright' look, Miranda smiled softly to show him she was okay. Once Hackett spoke up, she snapped back into what Joker and Kasumi like to call 'ice mode'

"Shepherd, Cerberus strike squads have infiltrated Joughin, the capital of Benning" Hackett said.

"Any idea what they want?" Shepherd asked.

"Initial reports indicated they were recruiting civilians, but further reports suggest they are being taking against their will"

"That's strange…Cerberus policy is to never force a person to our ranks, it was to limit Cerberus' enemies" Jacob said.

"That was until Grissom Academy…" Miranda said.

"Mister Taylor may be on to something; Cerberus is denying responsibility and condemning the action" Hackett said.

Jacob scoffed. "Nice to know they still have a conscience, not that it matters now"

"They're either lying or we're dealing with a rogue faction"

Shepherd frowned. "And innocents are caught in the crossfire"

"Exactly, secure the area so we can establish a rescue lifeline to the rest of the city" Hackett said.

"Approaching the drop site, Commander" Cortez said.

"Roger that" Joughin, the capital of Benning and the bread and butter of the colony's economy due to the now destroyed Arcturus Station being only a system away. It was one of the biggest creators of ships for the Alliance other than Earth and Shanxi. Joughin was also known as the 'the Engineer City' as most of the locals were engineers for either private companies or the Alliance. And it showed, the city was a huge maze of shipyards and apartments, it was quite common for people to live across the street from their jobs and have several co-workers from the same job to be next-door neighbors. With how maze-like the city itself was, the civilians probably thought they could hide from Cerberus. The shuttle land on the port in the middle of the city and Shepherd and team jumped off.

"Commander, fielding an avalanche of SOS requests from Civilians, the bulk of it is on Upper Street to the east" Cortez said. "Shit, Cerberus forces are wiping them out, better hurry!"

Shepherd nodded. "On our way, keep me updated"

"Understood"

They went to the east and saw some civilians running away only to be gunned down by Cerberus. When they got there they could only gasp at the sight, limbs were all over the street from Cerberus tossing grenades at them, the bodies that were intact were shredded from gunfire. There were some who tried to fight back and had shots to the head for their trouble; it was nothing short of a bloodbath. There was a single wave of Assault Troopers, supported by a Combat Engineer and a Centurion.

"Wipe them out" Shepherd said icily. Turret scanned for them and fired on them, while the Centurion threw smoke grenades to obscure their vision. Due to the building interlinking with each other, the squad had plenty of cover, but so did Cerberus. Miranda activated her shield and went for the turret first, with the turret fired on her; Shepherd stripped it of its shields while Jacob zipped across the street charging any trooper that tried to flank Miranda. Miranda destroyed the turret with her flamer, a grenade was thrown and exploded breaking her shield, while she got to cover Shepherd froze the troopers with his stasis field and Jacob charged them, sending them flying.

The Centurion threw grenades causing the team to scatter while the Engineer tried to set up another turret. Shepherd drained the Centurion's shield and Miranda shot him in the head, meanwhile Jacob charged moved from cover to cover shooting the turret with his incendiary enhanced pistol. When the turret was destroyed, he charged the engineer and double tapped him. Shepherd raised his com. "Cortez, no good here…Cerberus wiped the civilians out…."

"Are you sure? Because I getting a life sign in that area, but it's faint" he said. Shepherd and team looked around and saw nothing but dead civilians, Cortez's readings must have been off. The team then heard a faint whimper and movement in the corner of their eyes. They found an asari crawling from the shadows to an asari dead before her, bleeding a lot from her side. Miranda went to her and patched her up with some medi-gel.

"Cortez, we found a civilian, an asari, Miranda is patching her up now" he said. "Standby"

"Roger that" Miranda was patching the young asari, she was hysterical until her wounds got the better of her.

"I'm sorry for your loss…who was she?" Miranda asked.

The asari sniffed. "My mother…we were trying to escape, trying to get to the space port so we could be with my father on the Citadel…he was one of the few that survived the attack on Arcturus" she said. The asari then looked at Miranda closely and then her eyes went wide. "Y…you look like Oriana…"

Miranda looked at her. "How do you know my sister?"

"My name is Nja Simpson, I'm a friend of Oriana…we had class together" Nja said. "She told me she had a sister…is she alright? When I heard about her parents…and the fact she disappeared days after that…"

Miranda looked away, she didn't know what she could say, she didn't know if her sister was alright, she didn't even know where she was…Nja gave a sad look. Miranda gave a hollow smile. "She's fine…you might just see her…on the Citadel" she lied.

"That's good…I would like to see her again…" She closed her eyes, talking when she had a bad wound had tried her out. Jacob walked up to Miranda and looked at the asari.

"Is she?" Jacob asked.

"No, she's just out cold…"

"Sorry, I overheard the whole thing, are you sure about lying to her about Orianna?" he asked.

"She doesn't need to know…it's for her own good…" Miranda said. They went back to the shuttle and placed the young asari in the shuttle.

"Anymore civilians?" Shepherd asked.

"I'm tracking civilians fleeing the city with Cerberus troop's right behind" Cortez said.

"Where are they?"

"Updating your Nav-point. It's in the south" Shepherd nodded and the team went back out and saw Cerberus troops attacking a group of civilians to the south. When they heard gunshots when they got closer, they double timed it and found that Cerberus had killed all but two when they struggled. They cleared out the area of hostiles and spoke to the colonists. Jacob stayed with the civilians while Shepherd and Miranda were on look out.

"Are you here to help us?"

"Yeah, we'll get you out, try to stay calm" Jacob said. The civilians looked scared and looked at the dead before them. They didn't seem convinced they would get out, according to them a squad of Alliance troops promised them the same earlier and they were slaughtered by Cerberus. Either way they kept calm or at least tried to.

"What…what should we do?" Shepherd and Miranda came back.

"Just stay down" Shepherd said. "Jacob, Cerberus reinforcements are coming, we're going to have to fight our way out"

Jacob frowned. "What about the civilians? They can't fight back"

"They'll have to stay in cover, Cerberus will be surrounding us soon…" Shepherd said grimly. "We hold the line here, and that will give them time to escape"

"Commander, they're here!" Miranda said. Shepherd nodded and gave Jacob his arc projector.

"Any Cerberus bastard that comes close, fry them" he said. "Miranda, you're with me, burn them, freeze them, I don't care, but clear a path, got it?" Jacob and Miranda nodded, as the Cerberus troopers flooded the area. Shepherd lifted the Cerberus troopers with his singularity field, and Miranda blew them back with a warp field. They then came from the side and Jacob pulled the trigger and electricity stunned them and then he charged them, pushing them back.

"Shepherd, we're going inside, there's more cover" Jacob said.

"Good idea, Miranda take point, I'll take the rear, follow Jacob" The team got inside the building, Cerberus tried to get inside from the front and Miranda burned them with her flamer. Shepherd froze the troopers with his stasis and blew them back with a throw. When it was cleared on Miranda's front, they ran out with Jacob and Shepherd covering the rear.

"Landing pad clear, hurry, we'll follow!" The civilians made a run for the landing pad, with the team close behind and unfortunately Cerberus.

"Cortez, we're at the extraction point, get us out of here" Shepherd said on his comm.

"Sorry, Commander, I can't land until Cerberus is dealt with" Cortez said.

"Got it, we're to clear the landing pad, do whatever it takes" Jacob and Miranda nodded. The civilians took cover in the far corner with the most cover as the troopers flooded the area. The Centurions threw smoke grenades as the troopers flanked the team and blasted them. Jacob charged at the troopers and shot them with his shotgun; Miranda lifted the enemy and slammed them to the ground. Shepherd threw his lift grenades and threw a warp field to the troopers, causing them to drop like flies. To the corner of Shepherd's eyes saw engineers setting up their turrets while the troopers gave them cover with gun fire and grenades. Jacob shot them with the Arc projector frying the turret and the engineer's shields while stunning the troopers. Shepherd tossed a grenade and Miranda sent out a warp field causing an explosion that wiped them out. After the battle, it was quiet.

"Cortez?"

"No hostiles detected" Cortez said. "Reinforcements are moving in to secure the evac route"

Shepherd gave a sigh of relief. "Good work everyone"

"Picking you up now, Commander"

_**The Normandy**_

The team and civilians was back to the Normandy, they were on their way to the Citadel to drop off the civilians. Dr. Chakwas and Mordin checked on them for injuries other than the asari gun wound to the side they would make a full recovery however the mental images of the carnage Cerberus caused would haunt them for a long time. Surpringly enough Eve volunteered to help with the civilians despite her weakened immune system much to the chagrin of Mordin. Miranda was in her room looking at a picture of her sister and her parents, looking so happy. She remembered Oriana asking her to come visit her one day because she wanted to add Miranda to the family photo. She refused because she wanted to protect her and she had a lot of enemies, looking back on it now she regretted that, because it could never happen now. The door opened and Jacob came in.

"Hey, babe…"

Miranda smiled sadly. "Hey…" Jacob sat next to her and she laid her head on his shoulders.

"Penny for your thoughts…"

"Nothing, just thinking about Ori, wondering if we'll find her…" Miranda said. Jacob kissed her forehead.

"We will, Liara is using a lot her network to find her, don't worry…" he said. "Unless something else is bothering you"

Miranda signed. "I'm really no different than my father…"

Jacob frowned. "That's not true, Miri…"

"Really? How many lives have I ruined, because of my pissing match with my father?" she asked bitterly.

"That's your father's fault, not yours"

"Orianna, her asari friend, her adoptive parents…" Miranda said. "You and Niket, after all the crap I've you put you through, how could ever stay with me…?" Jacob raised her head and gave her a deep kiss on the lips.

"Easy, I love you and I want you to be happy, if it means going through hell, then so be it" he said. "But I won't let your bastard father win, and you shouldn't either, we'll stop your father and save Ori, and you know Shepherd and the others will help also"

Miranda smiled. "I don't deserve you…" she said giving Jacob a hug. "Thank you for the pep talk, love"

Jacob smiled. "Anytime…"

_**The Citadel**_

Udina was alone in his office, reading reports on Earth; it was bad and getting worse and worse. Whole major cities were going silent one by one, so much so that the resistance led by Anderson was avoiding huge population centers. When the reapers weren't slaughtering civilians, they were rounding them up in containment camps to be processed into reaper troops. It was just Earth, it was all their colonies, some decided to kill their whole colony themselves included to deny the reapers access to more troops. He sighed and opened his omni-tool. "Stella, you can go home for today"

"What about the reports sir?"

"I will handle it, now go"

Stella nodded. "Of course see you later, Councilor" Udina then opened a new window and a man in a dark suit was on the screen.

"Ah, Councilor Udina, to what we own the honor?" the man asked.

"Have you heard what Shepherd is trying to do?"

"Of course, trying to achieve a truce between the krogan and the turians, a fool's errand" he said. "But I'm sure you know this, otherwise you wouldn't be calling us…"

"My homeworld is burning and the Council is sitting on their asses and twiddling their thumbs, I won't stand for this…" Udina said. "Even if I must work with you people"

"Please Udina, you insult us, after all we are ultimately on the same side" the man said. "Name your price…"

"I need extra resources for Earth…"

"Before we agree to this, we want something from you also…" he said. "It's only fair, as business partners…"

"Name your price…." The man gave a cruel grin.


	26. Ch 22: What Is This Thing You Call Love?

**Chapter 22: What Is This Thing You Call Love?**

_**The Normandy**_

It was a quiet day on the Normandy, well as relatively quiet as one could get in the middle of the reaper war. The Normandy was making its way to the Citadel to drop off the civilians rescued from Benning, while transitioning to a relay EDI decided to make some observations. It's been a month since EDI took control of Dr. Eva's body, everyone had treated her differently, for example before taking her new body the crew would only have to call her from anywhere on the ship and she would answer.

Now the crew greeted her in person, as if they wish to make her a part of the crew…it was not needed but she….liked it. She looked over to Joker who was quietly reading Fornmax, Joker also had a change he seemed happy about her having a new body so much that he wanted her on the bridge to keep his morale up. Not only that he seem more protective of her, when she goes out on missions with Shepherd his body chemistry changed making him more anxious, she believed Joker became emotionally attached to her. He was falling in love with her, this was new data she did not foresee, ever since they took back the Normandy from the Collectors a year ago they had amicable working relationship…he considered her a friend, that was enough for her but love….she was not prepared for.

So she did the only thing she could do: research love and relationships. EDI had been reading relation sites on the extranet, watching romantic movies, even borrowed some of Joker's porn stash much to the astonishment of the pilot. However they didn't help much, as it assumed that EDI participated in Earth subculture, with her references no help she needed to find better information. She sensed a sensation; the Normandy was out of FTL and was in the Widow system to dock with the Citadel.

_**The Citadel**_

"Normandy? We are transferring your docking clearance to an Alliance official"

Joker scoffed. "Figures, back in action and they still want to keep tabs on us…." Since Shepherd's trial on Earth, the crew had been quite mistrustful of the Alliance and the Alliance's higher-ups was somewhat the same way. Reaper war had eased tensions between them but it was still there.

"Just our way of welcoming you back, Flight Lieutenant" a woman said.

Joker stiffened up. "Uh, yes ma'am! Requesting docking permission"

"Approved" The Normandy glided into the dock and the magnetic clamps were locked into place. There were more ships in the dock than last time and a lot of them looked run down. The Citadel had to open the private docks for the refugees, it was good for now, but it would come to a time where Citadel Control will have to turn them back due to the lack of space. Joker got up out of the chair and to the air lock, he then looked back.

"EDI, you coming?" Joker asked.

EDI tilted her head. "Jeff, I do not think it would be wise someone could find out I'm a AI" she said.

"Don't worry about it, I'll come up with something…plus you could use the break"

"I don't need a break…I don't get tired like organics do"

"Then you can see the sights, I'm sure you wanted to see the inside of the Citadel at least once" EDI had to admit Joker got her there, she had never seen the Citadel except from the Normandy's external cameras. She could hack into the Citadel's surveillance cameras now that she was unshackled, but the station's security systems were too complex even for her. Plus it wouldn't be as fun.

"Very well, I will accompany you, Jeff" EDI said. They went off the ship; the Citadel was more amazing than she thought. She was absorbing so much stimuli that it was almost overwhelming. They went to the security where they were stopped as EDI's body set off the alarms, a turian officer and a female human officer came to them.

"Uh, something the matter…" Joker said nervously.

"I'm sorry sir, but your assistant mech is not allowed" the turian officer said. "With indoctrinated agents out there we can't be too careful…"

The human officer nodded. "Yes, either return the mech to you ship or we will confiscate it" Joker and EDI looked at each other; this was what they were afraid of. However Jeff just smiled at the officers and then wrapped his arm around EDI's neck, EDI on instinct wrapped her arm around Joker's waist.

"Ah, damn it here it goes again, damn leg bothering me" Joker said. The turian and human looked at each other. "This is my mobility assistance mech, you see I have Vrolik Syndrome and I need to keep it with me at all times"

"But sir, there are security concerns…" the officer said.

"Look at me, my bones shatter if I so much as sneeze, do you really think the reapers or Cerberus would want me as their sleeper agents?" Joker said. "Besides, aren't I legally entitled to have it due to my condition, I could sue for discrimination" EDI knew it was all a lie, Cerberus did extensive treatment on Joker to strengthen his bones so he wouldn't be a liability on the Collector mission. His bones weren't as strong a healthy human, but he was far from frail. However the officer didn't know that and begrudgingly let them through as they went to the elevator. Once the door closed, Joker let go of EDI slightly blushing. "Uh, sorry EDI…"

"I do not worry Jeff, I was not bothered by it, in fact I'm flattered that you would lie to law officials for me" They went to the Presidium commons, unlike the officers the people didn't notice EDI as they were busy with their own problems. She looked at all the people holding hands and hooking with each other, not to mention the amount of advertisements for dating services. There were even something as strange as a human woman laying her head on the shoulders of a batarian, humans and batarians were supposed to be mortal enemies. "Jeff, I wonder if you could answer me this question."

Joker looked back. "Yeah?"

"There seem to be a disproportionately high amount of coupling going on…why is that when they should be focused on the reapers?" EDI asked.

Joker sighed. "People are scared, they don't know what the future holds for them so they reach out for something familiar" he said. "What's more familiar than the person standing next to you?"

"I see…" They continued to see the sights, Joker seemed amused but for EDI, she was more interested in the other couples. She noticed that a lot of them held each other's hands went they walked, as they continued she tried it on the pilot but ended up fracturing his pinky finger. Eventually, Joker had to stop and take a breather, although Cerberus has improved the strength of his bones he couldn't walk long without putting some strain on it. He went to a bench while EDI fetched some refreshments at the café. While she was walking to the café, she saw Shepherd and Tali together hand in hand, and had a thought….maybe she was looking at this the wrong way by using outside references and instead should be talking to an actual couple. "Greetings, Shepherd and Tali"

Shepherd and Tali looked at her. "EDI what are you doing here?" Tali asked. "How did you get past security?"

"Jeff, he told C-sec that I was his mobile assistant mech…it was quite an effective lie" she said. Tali was about to say something, but her omni-tool beeped.

"Keelah…"

"Something wrong, Rookie?" Shepherd asked.

"A Maintenance personnel touched something he shouldn't have, have to go back and help Adams and the others…" Tali said. "Sorry Wayne, rain check?" Shepherd took her hand and kissed it, EDI watched them…kissing another factor to consider…that was going to be a problem she couldn't feel the sensation and she doubts Joker would like kissing cold metal.

Shepherd smiled. "Yeah later…" Tali walked away leaving Shepherd with his drink and then he looked at EDI. "Hey, something wrong? You're staring…"

"Shepherd, you have first-hand sexual experience. How do you know if someone's romantically invested?" Shepherd spit out his drink and coughed. EDI tilted her head. "Is there something wrong?"

Shepherd stopped coughing and looked at EDI. "No…just where the hell did that come from?"

"I was running scenarios in my head to analyze Jeff's behavior" She said. "I believe he has a strong emotional attachment, but has not stated it to anyone yet" Shepherd just stammered and shuddered, he pulled his collar a sign that he was quite uncomfortable with this subject.

"Uh….well…this is really…" Shepherd cleared his throat. " Um…God…t-they usually show signs they can't stop thinking about you…you know asking you out, giving you presents…playing music…"

"But I lack material warmth other than software and hardware and my programing don't assign values to music" She said. "Perhaps we could discuss how to provoke Jeff into an emotional commitment"

"Ah…that's not how to think of it… Look, it's got to be natural, you need chemistry…" Shepherd said.

EDI's eyes lit up, chemistry…she may not have understood relationships but she did understand chemistry, finally something she could relate with. "There are some pharmaceuticals I could inject to have the desired effect…"

Shepherd held out his hand. "Whoa girl, slow your roll, not like that, I mean relax "he said. "Do something you both like for example, you two like humor"

Well she did like the occasional joke or two, although Shepherd didn't enjoy that joke about forgetting to recycle the Normandy's oxygen when she was interested about something. Maybe some entertainment will help her get close to Joker and improve her sense of humor. "I will scan for some comedic entertainment that's being shown on the Citadel" EDI said. "Scanning…do you think Jeff would like the Man who Hung Himself? It's about an amorous plastic surgeon"

Shepherd palmed his face. "Son of a…" he said. "Look the important thing is to have fun wherever you go, and if you're having fun, he will too"

EDI blinked. "Then the outcome becomes unknown, but you are saying I should attempt it anyway…"

Shepherd nodded. "Do you know how many things could have gone wrong when I first dated Tali? A lot, but I tried it anyway" he said with a smirk. "Nobody ever fell in love, without being a bit brave"

EDI smiled a little. "I see…I believe you just improved my chances, Shepherd. Thank you" She went to pick up Joker's drink and walked back to the pilot.

"Oh thank god…"Shepherd said relieved. He got beep from his omni-tool, and read a message.

_From: Sender Blocked_

_Commander:_

_My name is Jondum Bau. I'm with Special Tactics & Recon._

_While some still have concerns about your past activities with Cerberus, many of us in ST&R took your warnings about the Reapers seriously. I'm reaching out to you because I have information that could tie agents with significant political power to the Reapers._

_If you have time to meet me in the Citadel Embassy, I'd appreciate your discreet assistance._

_Sincerely,_

_Jondum Bau, STG, ST&R_

"Dealing with another Spectre, it has to be easier than explaining love to an AI…." Shepherd went to the Embassy.

_**Review and Comment**_


	27. Ch 23: A Thief, 2 Spectres,& a Jellyfish

**Chapter 23: A Thief, Two Spectres, and A Jellyfish**

_**The Embassy (Citadel)**_

Shepherd went up to the Embassy; the lobby had more of a crowd than last time with people trying to find the whereabouts of friends and family. The embassy offices were even worse with ambassadors and diplomats trying to get updates on evacuations of their homeworlds and colonies, some were talking to Alliance officials on the Crucible despite it being a risky bet. The workers looked tired trying to manage the long lines and take calls from the politicians. He went upstairs and met with a salarian in black armor waiting outside the spectre office. "Commander Shepherd. Jondum Bau, Spectre, I've gotten intel of high-level hanar officials being indoctrinated"

"That's some accusation, got proof?"

"Evidence of an Alliance Black-ops team raiding a batarian research station. The batarians were studying reaper tech" Shepherd frowned at that, he remembered what Anderson said about Khar'shan being hit out of the gate. As it turned out, the Hegemony didn't even fight back when the reapers came, which meant the government was indoctrinated and that made them easy pickings for the reapers.

"Tell me more…"

"The Alliance raid turned into a massacre, and the humans ended up with nothing, your people faked a power failure to hide the incident" Bau said.

"We would have gone to war with the batarians, but how does this have anything to do with a hanar?" Shepherd asked.

"They had discreet grey-market trade relationships with the batarians….and led the Alliance to the station" Shepherd palmed his face; it always reverted back to politics. The hanar were business partners with the batarians for weapons and tech however they had a major partnership with the Alliance. If the Alliance found out that the hanar was working with their worst enemy, they would have cut ties with the Primacy which would hurt their economy, so the hanar continued their trade on the down low but fed the Alliance information to stay on humanities' good side. Shepherd sometimes forget that even the polite hanar could be as deceitful as any other race.

"So the jellies were playing both sides…"

"Correct, we suspect that the hanar escaped with batarian tech, and considering the tech, they could be indoctrinated"

"And how did you get this?"

"It was a 'gift' from Kasumi Goto, a thief I've been after for years"

Shepherd groaned. "I see" he said. "What do you need me to do?"

"The operative is now a diplomat on the Ciadel, I don't have the public name and I can't make a formal inquiry"

"So we're hunting…"

"I am tracking suspicious transmissions to the hanar homeworld. I could use your help"

"I'll see what I can dig up" Shepherd went into the spectre office, a high-tech information center so spectres could intervene in Citadel politics and security. It even had firing range so spectres could keep their skills up, Shepherd however had really no need for it since he had Liara's Shadow Broker network and plus being other there on the field fighting reaper was keeping his skills sharp. He went inside the main room and a voice spoke up behind him.

"Remember that information that could start a war? That was it" Kasumi said. Shepherd turned around and Kasumi appeared before him. A year ago, Shepherd and Kasumi infiltrated the party of Donovan Hock, former CEO of Rosenkov Materials and ruthless arms dealer on the side. Their mission was to get back the greybox of Keiji Okuda, Kasumi's former partner and fiancé; they had gotten back his grey box but had to fight through an army of Eclipse mercs that Hock had hired as security for his party. It all ended in the death of Donovan Hock.

"So cuz, how did you get this info out when you destroyed Keiji graybox?" Shepherd asked. Kasumi lowered her head. "You didn't…"

"I uploaded everything to my omni-tool, Keij's graybox was empty when I destroyed it" Kasumi said sadly. "I…I couldn't let go…"

Shepherd frowned. "So why leak it?"

"I wanted to do my part for the war….and I needed closure…" She said. "Before I delete it for good…"

Shepherd features soften; he knew he couldn't lecture his cousin on letting people close to him go. He sighed. "Okay….let's do this, oh you might want to cloak, Bau is…" Kasumi just smiled. "Of course…" Kasumi cloaked and Shepherd went to the terminal and opened his com

"Shepherd, I'm tracking security reports. Can you track the transfers coming from the hanar embassy?"

"On it"

"Bau's got a good plan, hanar are predicable, and anything suspicious should narrow down our list" Kasumi said.

Shepherd walked out of the office. "You think pretty highly of him, considering he's after you"

"No one's perfect, besides he's a good spectre, the galaxy needs more like him" They made to the Embassy Lounge and a terminal. Shepherd opened his com, to look up some information, on the hanar…. With a C-sec officer and loads of people around him, he found it amusing at times how his status blurs the line at being lawful and outright criminal. The terminal beeped.

"Bau, I got some hits, some money transfers on Bolohn and Oloon is sending lots of data" he said.

"Bolohn's clean; the money is for his mistress…." Bau said. Bau explains that Bolohn was pressured by his government to take up the mistress (who is asari) to help further relations between their people. He also comments that if the scandal were ever reported, Bolohn would wind up in serious trouble with his government. Shepherd chuckled at the irony. "As for Oloon, I'll pull his record"

"I'll check Oloon's records and his messages" Shepherd said.

"Um, how exactly a hanar mistress would work?" Kasumi asked. The thief thought about it and then blushed. "Uh, you know what, maybe it's best not to know…"

"Wise move" They moved to the docks and access the terminal right outside the elevator. "Bau, Oloon's not our guy; he's doing some heavy lobbying for the war effort"

"Clearly not indoctrinated, who's opposing him?" Shepherd looked back at the terminal.

"Unknown, but he was recently posted here from Kahjie. I'll check the transfer records"

Kasumi sighed. "It all comes down to this damn war…."

"I know, but what can you do? The reapers can't win…" Shepherd said. Kasumi looked at the people at the makeshift memorial, looking at their love ones before the war. Sometimes she wished she took the easy way out and got lost in her memories of Keiji, but it wouldn't have helped her and it would have been an insult to his memory. They access the terminal on the far end of the Docks Holding Area to contact Bau.

"I got a list of new hanar arrivals, forwarding now…"

"No good, these are face names, the hanar names from the raid were soul names"

"What difference does it makes?" Shepherd asked annoyed. The hanar had two names, a "face name" and a "soul name." The face name was used as a general label for use by strangers and acquaintances. The soul name is kept for use among close friends and relations, and tends to be poetic.

"Soul names are private, no public record…"

Shepherd sighed. "Never this simple, huh? I'll try personal communications"

"Standing by" Shepherd went back to the last terminal, and read down the list until he found a match.

"Bau, forwarding you the list"

"I got it, a recent arrival, Zymandis. Soul name: Regards the works of the enkindler in despair"

"Wow…that's grim" Kasumi said.

"He was with the Alliance team that massacred the batarians. He's been on special research assignment ever since" Bau said. Shepherd knew what that meant, the hanar had been researching reaper tech since the raid.

"That's not good; I'll meet you at the embassy"

"Right" Once back at the Embassies, they head to the office suite on the left side of the elevator where Bau met them. They went inside; at side of the door was a human, mostly Zymandis' guard. The group didn't know if the guard was indoctrinated himself and kept an eye on him. In front of them was Zymandis in front of a terminal, Shepherd walked forward cautiously, as unbelievable as it sounded despite the hanar's overt politeness they could be pretty dangerous. Hanar like jellyfish on Earth had stinging cells with toxins, and although it was not potent enough to kill someone, it could land people in the hospital, many diplomats dealing with hanar politicians had to wear special gloves to do a simple handshake. Not to mention, Shepherd and Kasumi hadn't forgotten Zaeed's story about a pissed off hanar that tried to strangle him.

"Zymandis?"

"Or should I say: Regards the Works of the Enkindler in Despair?"

Zymandis scoffed. "It seems this one had been apprehended, but confinement is irrelevant. The work of the Enkindlers cannot be stooped"

"Why help the reapers? They're trying to destroy everything" Shepherd asked.

"Why? Because the Enkindlers serve the reapers"

"You mean the Protheans, you're wrong, they became the reapers' slave"

"Yes, this one is aware the Collectors were once the Enkindlers, but they serve the reapers and this one must serve the Enkindles" Zymandis said.

"You got be kidding me…"

"Therefore we too must serve the reapers"

Shepherd glowed blue. "You big…stupid…jellyfish"

"You know, I support religious freedom, but this is crazy" Kasumi whispered.

"You're skepticism does not matter, when the Enkindlers uplift us, the galaxy will bear witness"

"Not if we stop you, you're under arrest" Bau said.

"You are mistaken; our planetary defense network is largely automated. It can be disabled with a single virus" he said. "Which I just uploaded…"

"Wait, I may be able to block it" Bau quickly springs into action and attempts to stop the upload, but the guard ran to him and placed his hand around his throat. It looked like they were right to be worried about the human.

"You may be delayed." Kasumi decloaked and jumped over the desk to a laptop on the side.

"Wayne help him, I got the virus" Shepherd went to the guard, and pulls him away for Bau. He tried to retaliate with a punch but Shepherd grabs his hand and used his other hand to slam the guard's head into to the wall knocking him out the man. Bau got up and took out his gun and shot Zymandis. One shot and the hanar was turned to sludge. Shepherd looked to the thief.

"Kasumi?"

"Got it! The upload is disabled, we're in…shit, and he's got a failsafe. Get down!" The console explodes and knocks Kasumi against a wall, which activates her cloak.

Bau blinked. "She was here the entire time?"

"She's a friend, she tried to help…"

"I was going to arrest…but she sacrificed herself for the hanar homeworld…I guess she was more than a criminal" Bau said. He faced the spectre. "When the time comes, I'll be there to return the favor, with some friends"

"Got it" Bau left the room and Shepherd crossed his arms. "You can come out now cuz,.."

Kasumi decloaked and smirked. "I thought he'd never leave…" she then sighed. "It's over; I can finally put him to rest…"

Shepherd but his hand on his cousin's shoulder. "You sure, Kasumi?"

"Yeah, at some point you have to let them go, let them rest…" she said sadly. She activated her omni-tool and deleted everything the intel and her lover's memories with it. "I'll never forget him, but I have to move on, it's what he would have wanted"

"I'm with you cuz, till the end…"

Shepherd smiled. "Let's go home; we got a galaxy to save…" The two cousins went back to the Normandy.


	28. Chapter 24: Family Matters Act 1

_**Chapter 24: Family Matters Act 1**_

_**The Citadel (Presidium Commons)**_

Garrus went to the Presidium to get some fresh air; he was down in the refugee came helping with some injured soldiers from Palaven. Victus and Sparatus had convinced the other council to accept the wounded from Palaven, with the reapers laying siege to other Turian colonies, they had nowhere to go. However, the soldiers had to be treated at the refugee camp due to not having enough room at the clincs and Huerta Memorial, though the refugees had problems of their own a lot of them volunteered to care for the soldiers. It seemed even in a shit-storm like the reaper war, there was still time for kindness.

He went to the Citadel café, he really needed a drink or….two, as he entered he saw Liara sitting in the back with a datapad. The turian sighed and shook his head, his girlfriend was supposed to take a day off for herself. The asari had been quite busy when she wasn't on the ground with Shepherd for mission, she had checking updates from her agents on the status of various colonies, recruiting all the galaxy's talented minds to work on the Crucible, not mention probing Javik for information on the Protheans. It was not uncommon for Garrus to see the young asari at her desk asleep after an all-nighter. Garrus came down and met with Liara, who was still on her data pad.

"Aren't you supposed to be taking it easy?" Garrus said.

Liara looked back at the Turian and sighed. "I know, but one call leads to another…there are things that need be done…" she said. "We need to get eezo, heavy arms, mercenary groups…" Garrus came over and nuzzled her neck, Liara moaned and smiled a little at him.

"We'll get those done, Li…just don't forget to come up for air sometime" Liara kissed his cheek.

"I won't, I promise…" Garrus took a seat next her and Liara leaned her head into his shoulder. "How has your day been going?"

Garrus sighed. "Stressful…I was in the refugee area, trying to help some soldiers that flown in from Palaven"

Liara raised her head and looked at him. "How bad is it?" she asked concerned.

"More dead than injured…Eighty-five percent killed in action" Garrus said grimly. "We'll need a morgue soon…"

"Goddess, that high…?"

"I've heard the stories from the soldiers still alive, it's gotten worse…" he said. "Our front lines are being wiped out a platoon at a time, it's gotten to a point where it's not a war anymore…it's slaughter"

"Any word from your family?" Liara asked. When Garrus didn't answer, she knew it meant no. Ever since he got off of Menae, Garrus had been looking at reports of Civilian evacuations in hopes of that his father and younger sister made it off Palaven. From the look on Garrus' face he was under no illusion of what could have happened to them, the reapers were ruthless, they attacked anything that moved whether it be soldiers bringing the fight to them or civilians running away from their carnage, it didn't matter. Not only that, they were cruel, if one didn't die, they were converted…to fight for the reapers. Liara gripped his hand. "I'm sure they made it off, Garrus"

"That's the thing about getting old, Li…the platitudes get just as old…" Garrus said. "Have you heard from Shiala?"

Liara lowered her head, she had gotten a message from her aunt, and it detailed how the colonists on Feros were fighting the Reapers. The Thorian spores inside her and the colonists' bodies had given them the strange ability to sense one another, allowing them to think and act as one in battle. It gave them a small advantage, as it allowed them to plan and communicate without the reapers tapping into their communications. However as useful as it was in the short-term, she had no idea how it will affect them in the long term.

But it was not that part of the message that bothered her, it was the next part…Shiala spoke of voices in her head, and oily shadows in her dreams, she was starting to feel the Reapers' influence in her mind. However, she said that her indoctrination was being slowed by her connections to the other colonists, but she was under no illusion that her fate was sealed. She would either be killed by the reapers or she would lose her sense of self to reapers and be killed by the colonists but regardless she said she would fight until the Goddess called her. Liara closed her eyes and took her deep breath. "It was her last will and testament…."

"Li…" Garrus said softly.

"I'm fine, Garrus….I guess I should have expected it, after all she was too close to Sovereign like my mother was" Liara said sadly. "It looks like I'm the last of my family…"

"What about your mother's bondmate?" Garrus asked.

"Never knew her" Liara said. It was a lie, while it used to be true that she didn't know who her 'dad' was, since becoming the Shadow Broker a lot of things became open to her. Like the identity of her 'father', as it turned out she used to be a leader on Thessia like Benezia but unlike her mother she was very unpopular for her radical ideas. So she left Asari space, for a bar on Illum. "Benezia never spoke of her"

"Why not?" Garrus asked.

"Union among our kind is no longer common, some asari believe it weakens our species" she said. "It's was where the stigma…pureblood come from, it possible they were embarrassed by their union and separated on bad terms"

"So you never wondered about her?"

"No, not really…" Liara's omni-tool beeped. "Well…"

"What?" Garrus asked.

"It seems some mercenaries are willing to join the war effort" she said. "Well, I have to go Garrus"

"Wait you're meeting them in person?"

"Of course, I want to make sure the mercs don't try anything" Liara walked away, leaving Garrus. The turian went to the bar and ordered his drink, at the bar there was an asari that took his order. She was a matriarch, which was surprising considering asari matriarchs are supposed to be one of the most respected people in the galaxy short of the Council and leaders of the Council world. He would really like to know how a matriarch became a bartender on the Citadel.

"I know who you are, I've seen you with that Shepherd guy a couple of times" she said.

"He's my boss" Garrus said.

The asari chuckled as she reached for a bottle of turian wine, not something he usually drink, he liked the heavier liquors from Cipritine but since Palaven was under siege by the reapers this was as good as he was going to get. "So, you're in the thick of it….can't say I envy you" she said. "Heard what's going on Palaven, that's rough, you have my condolences"

"Thanks, but I have no doubts we'll kick them off Palaven and then the galaxy" Garrus said.

The asari smirked. "Damn right" she said. Garrus opened his omni-tool to pay for the drink, but the matriarch held out his hand. "That's alright, this is on the house"

Garrus blinked. "Uh, you sure won't you get in trouble with your boss?" he asked.

"You flying around, trying save our asses from the reapers I think we can afford a couple of free drinks" She said.

"Uh thanks…um…"

"Aethyta" she said. "And you are?"

"Garrus" he responded. Garrus took his drink and went back to refugee camp for updates on some of turian soldiers' conditions. Aethyta looked back at her human boss.

"Yo, Benson, I'm taking a break…I'll be back in ten minutes" She went to the back, looked to see if anyone was around and opened her omni-tool. A light blue asari in a black and yellow dress appeared. Her name was Keness Dantius, one of the high matriarchs back on Thessia and mother of the dead diplomatic emissary Nassana Dantius. In public, she had a façade of a caring advisor to the people, however Aethyta knew differently…among the other matriarchs, she was known to be quite ruthless and manipulative. In fact, the whole family was known to have some shady dealings…money laundering, blackmail, and back-stabbing was par for the course.

"Aethyta, glad to see you made it off Illium" she said with a smile.

Aethyta rolled her eyes. "I want off this thing" the matriarch said. Keness' eyes instantly went cold, Aethyta snorted…that was the asari she had come to know.

"Excuse me?" she asked coldly.

"You heard me, I'm not spying on Liara for you anymore"

"This is unacceptable Aethyta, think of the danger she poses" she said. "Don't be soft, just because she is your daughter!"

Aethyta frowned. "This isn't because she's my kid…it's because she's not a threat!" she said. "I overheard her and her boyfriend and you know what they were mostly talking about? Casualties in the war…resources for the war, she's on our side…in fact from the way they were talking she's in the middle of that clusterfuck!"

Keness scoffed. "I find it hard to believe, consider the shady connections she have…"

Aethyta snorted. "Because you would know about shady connections…" Keness' eyes soften and she calmed down, Aethyta frowned…she didn't like how calm the matriarch was. She had something under her sleeves.

"Very well, I'll tell the other matriarchs of you decision…although I would be worried about who your replacement would be…"

"Meaning?"

"I've heard…talks among the Matriarchs, they are expecting you choke on this assignment and they have plans replace you with a commando with a kill order…when you do…" That caught Aethyta's attention, she knew the Matriarchs were worried about Liara's broker connections, but to have commando on standby to kill her daughter meant they were really worried about what dirt she has on the republic and more importantly on them. Despite popular opinion on Thessia, the Matriarchs were not as clean as they would like the public to believe. "It's your choice, Aethyta, but choose wisely as it's your daugther's life…"

Aethyta frowned. "I get it, I'll continue watching her" she said. "I see three hundred years hadn't mellowed you out, Dantius, you're still the same cold bitch now as you were then"

Keness gave a smug smirk. "We'll be expecting updates" Her image disappeared.


	29. Chapter 25: A Soldier's Worth Act 2 pt1

**Chapter 25: A Soldier's Worth Act2 pt1**

_**The Citadel**_

Dalatrass Linron paced back and forth, frustrated that the plan to cure the genophage was a go. If it succeeded, the reapers would be the least of the galaxy's problems, the krogan were a violent, tenacious race…they would want revenge for the genophage cure and for once her people didn't have anything prepare for a resurgent krogan. "I know, Dalatrass, but you should have expected this…" Valern said. "I hate to say it but you underestimated Shepherd, a dangerous mistake"

Linron looked at him, and frowned…she knew he was right, Shepherd on the surface looked like any typical soldier…but in no time at all he had somehow gotten her to give clearance to one of the most secured STG bases on Sur'Kesh with a krogan attached no doubt. "Perhaps you're right, but it make doesn't make it better, and the fact one of our best STG operatives was tricked into this foolish endeavor"

Valern sighed. "Operative Solus wasn't tricked; he and Shepherd have a history together" he said. As much as the councilor disagreed with Shepherd, there was no denying that the krogan would be a huge boost in the war; he had read reports from the STG the reapers were getting closer. So far Thessia and Sur'kesh had yet to see the reapers make an appearance on their planet and for that, they were grateful, it meant they had extra time to prepare. However, no amount of preparation would be enough to stop the reapers, he would have to hope Shepherd is able to get the krogan successfully on board, even if it meant repeating history. "We'll have to wait it out and see, Shepherd has a good relationship with the leader of the Krogans" he said. "He may be able to persuade him to keep the other krogan in line"

Linron crossed her arms. "You're fooling yourself, Councilor…krogan can't be reasoned, we tried that to prevent the rebellions" she said.

"So what is your plan, Dalatrass?" Valern asked.

"He's desperate to save his people, it is why he's even considering curing the genophage" she said. "We just give him a better deal"

"And if this doesn't work?"

"It will work, everyone has a price…even Shepherd" She walked away, Valern sighed and shook his head. He opened a com and a salarian in black armor appeared.

"She is gone, what did you want to speak to me about, Spectre Bau…?"

_**Tuchanka**_

The Kodiak was bobbing and weaving trying to dodge the incoming fire, it was not a comfortable ride that was for sure, but it was urgent. Lieutenant Victus and his men had found the bomb, and unfortunately Cerberus was trying to arm it, it was a race against time…."Normandy shuttle, this is Victus with the Ninth Platoon. Do you copy?"

The shuttle rocked again this time, with more force than last time. "We hear you; make it quick, we in a pretty bad place…" Shepherd said.

"We're close to the bomb site, Cerberus is bouncing us around pretty bad" Victus said.

"This is as close as we get, Lieutenant, failure is not an option" he said. "What about this bomb? What do we know about it?"

Victus was quiet for a while. "It's not Cerberus…"

Shepherd frowned. "Excuse me?"

The Lieutenant sighed. "It's turian, it…was planted centuries ago after the Rebellions, it was a safeguard against another galactic war…."

Shepherd pinched the bridge of his nose. "You fucking kidding me?! We're just playing clean-up for a thousand year old war?!" Victus lowered his head. "And now Cerberus has it…we don't need this shit, Lieutenant…"

"I know, I'm sorry for lying, but…" Garrus spoke up.

"I know, it made sense at the time, we had to put the krogan down hard if they tried anything…" Garrus said. "I know you don't like it boss, but we did what we had to…"

"You won't earn trust with tactics like that" he said. "But now, we focus on disarming that bomb"

"Agreed, detonation means all-out war, between my people and the krogan" Victus said. "My men and the bomb are in this location, updating your nav-point"

"Right, let's finish up before the krogan, knows what's up" Victus nodded and his image faded. The shuttle doors opened to reveal a warzone, Cerberus troopers were getting their places as mortar fire rained on the field, on the other side was a ramp that lead to the inside of an old building. They jumped out of the shuttle, and ran towards building, taking cover when necessary, and confronting Cerberus troopers when they got too aggressive. As they got to the middle of the field, Cerberus reinforced themselves with portable shields and shields generators that restored their shields.

"We don't have time for this shit…" Shepherd said. Tali shot the generator, and the generators discharged shocking troopers in the vicinity. Garrus overload the Centurions' shields, the shock stunned them and anyone near them, Shepherd glowed blue and forcibly pulled the troopers and the centurions into the mortar fire. As they entered the ruined building, all they could hear were screams as they were killed by the explosions.

"Wayne, incoming transmission…" Tali said.

"Talk to me…"

"Once we reach the bomb, I'll need time to reprogram the trigger mechanism" Victus said. "No trigger, no explosion"

"Copy that" Once round the corner, Cerberus assault troops, engineers, and guardians attacked from behind shield generators. The team got to cover, and attacked. Tali summoned her drone to distract the guardians, and Garrus sniped them in the head. They soon went to cover when the engineers set up their turrets to lock them down, while Centurions and guardians flanked them. Shepherd took out his arc projector and pulled the trigger, causing the shield generator to explode killing the guardians and draining the centurion's shields. Once the pressure was taken of Tali and Garrus, they retaliated…Tali hacked the turrets which gunned down the engineers, once they were dead Garrus destroyed the turrets. The battle ended and the team headed up the rubble.

"We defeat the krogan and plant a bomb on their planet" Garrus said. "Extreme, but those were desperate time"

"Couldn't you try another way, to make peace…?"

Garrus shook his head. "I doubt it, we're both pretty stubborn, but I suppose after this war we'll have some work to do…."

"Something to look forward to…" Shepherd's comm opened.

"Cerberus is putting up a fight, but we're advancing, Commander" Victus said.

"Good work, we'll be there soon" Around the corner, more Cerberus assault troops and centurions appear. "Rookie, overheat their guns, Garrus, lay down some proxy mines" Tali raised her omni-tool and the troopers guns exploded setting the troopers on fire, the centurion rushed forward and set off the proxy mines. Shepherd's com opened.

"Commander! We're getting a lot of mortar fire! Heavy casualties!" Victus said. "We're taking an alternate route, circling around the bomb site"

"Copy that" Shepherd lifted them with a singularity field and used his throw field to knock them off the ledge. Tali spoke up.

"Wayne, I hacked into Cerberus' radio" she said. "It's bad…"

"Argo team, detonation protocol nearly complete" one of the troopers said. "Available units, slow Shepherd down!"

Shepherd frowned and opened his com. "Victus, it's Shepherd, you better double time it, Cerberus is nearly done arming the bomb"

"Understood" Victus said.

"Wayne, more chatter, they're prepping for evac" Tali said worried.

"Shit, I don't like the sound of that…" Shepherd said. "Double time, people!" As they turn the corner, there were more Cerberus Assault Troopers to deal with, but, as they make their way through them, more were being evacuated.

"Should we pursue?" Garrus asked.

"No let them go, we got bigger problems to deal with" Shepherd said. They made their way up the ramp, and took a look at the bomb site. It was huge, the bomb itself was held up by four metal legs that made the whole thing look like a giant insect. The legs were brown due to the dirt that covered up the bomb; the turians must have placed far underground so the krogan wouldn't notice. For Cerberus to be able to uncover this much of it, meant Cerberus had a presence on the planet for a while.

Tali's eyes were wide. "Keelah, how did the turians plant this without the krogan knowing?"

"Forget that, how did Cerberus dig it up, without the krogan knowing?" Garrus asked.

"We can worry about that later, come on" Shepherd's com opened.

"We've entered the bomb site, moving towards the control panel" Victus said.

"Make it count; we won't get a second chance"

"Understood"

They then headed up the ladder to the right, as they walked through the ruined building, they were not seeing any Cerberus troops, which made the team nervous. "I would have thought they had more troopers, trying to stop us" Tali said.

"Just wait, we're on top of the bomb, Cerberus will throw everything at us soon" Garrus said.

"But if the bomb goes off, they'll be caught too…"

"It wouldn't matter; remember that Cerberus' troops are indoctrinated" Shepherd said. "They're just there to stall us until the bomb goes off" After they make their way down the ramp, they saw more Cerberus soldiers fleeing, but they placed a turret, so the team ran to cover. "Rookie, take out the turret" Tali nodded and raised her omni-tool and the turrets shot at the wall, allowing the team to slip past. They were close to the bomb, Tali spoke up.

"The bomb seems to be on a fault line" she said analyzing the bomb. Her eyes grew wide she went deeper in the bomb, the bomb was a nuclear bomb with an dreadnoughts eezo core to not only power the bomb but also magnify the power of the blast. The bomb was on a fault line to maximize the damage; a bomb of this magnitude would make Virmire look like a firecracker.

"Shit, we need to hurry!" They continued around the corner and down the ladder, to meet with Victus. When they got there, they found only Victus and two of his men were left the heavy fighting had left a toll on the platoon. Victus was hard at work trying to disarm the bomb, with his men standing guard. "Well?"

"Cerberus set up firewalls around the trigger mechanism to slow us down" Victus said. "I'll need to create a bypass, it'll take time…"

"Specifics, Lieutenant"

"Fiffteen to twenty minutes, give or take…" he said. "Luckily it's old tech, so I know what to do, just buy me time"

Shepherd nodded. "Alright, we got your back"

"Got it, starting bypass" Victus said. "Commander, thank you for this chance…"

"Just make it right, soldier" Just then, one of Victus' men was shot in the head, and then another. "Damn, sniper, Garrus!" Garrus nodded and went to cover and got out his sniper rifle and fired, killing the Cerberus sniper. The team got to cover.

"Commander!"

"Focus on the bomb! We'll handle Cerberus" The team went down the trench and Cerberus came in guns blazing, hoping to get Victus. Behind them a Shuttle dropped in with Cerberus reinforcements and out came more troopers and Centurions.

"Detonation protocol in jeopardy" one of them said. "Shepherd is blocking access! All units, engage!" The troopers charged the team, and Shepherd tossed a grenade their way, lifting them in the air. Tali summoned her drones and took out her shotgun; Garrus was in the back for sniper support.

"No one gets near, clear?"

"Understood!" Garrus said. "We've got company!" The team saw the shuttles starting to land.

"I need more time, Commander!" Victus said. Shepherd used his singularity to suspend the troopers in the air, before they land, he then threw a warp field, and they fell to the ground. Garrus set up his proxy mines, and Tali's drone shocked the troopers that got close. More shuttles started to land.

"This going to be a long fight…."


	30. Chapter 26: A Soldier's Worth Act 2 pt2

**Chapter 26: A Soldier's Worth Act 2 pt2**

_**The Citadel**_

Valern frowned as he listened to Bau's report, during his investigation into the indoctrinated hanar diplomat he found something interesting on Udina. The human councilor had gotten huge sums of money to his account. Usually not a problem, except when the reapers attacked Earth they crippled the Alliance's economy and the money flow was too large to be from the Alliance. "This is indeed troubling, and you sure there is no way to trace the money?"

"No sir, I've tried countless times, and whoever gave Udina the money is very good at covering their tracks" Bau said. Valern sat back in his chair thinking of this dilemma, who could have the funds to supply Udina especially during the war? And what was Udina planning to do with that money? Logic states he was using it to fund the Alliance's Crucible project, except there had been no movement on that front.

"Should I notify C-sec?" Bau asked.

"No" Valern said. "Keep monitoring his messages and the money flow…" Bau saluted and his image faded.

Valern sat back in his chair and frowned. "What are you up to, Udina?"

_**Tuchanka**_

"Push 'em back!" Shepherd ordered.

The troopers kept coming and were backing the team into a corner. Tali's drone exploded and took a large chunk of the troopers out, but they still came. Shepherd took out his arc projector and pulled the trigger, and shocked a dozen troopers. Garrus had to switch to his assault rifle, as his sniper rifle was empty. It was bad all-around, and Victus still needed to disable the trigger.

Two engineers went to repair their turrets while the Centurions used smoke grenades to cover them. When the smoke cleared, the turrets were locking down the team. While the turrets fired on them, the guardians went to flank them. Tali re-summoned Chatika behind the first guardian; the drone shocked the trooper causing him to drop his shield and Shepherd to smash him against the wall snapping his neck. Garrus loaded his armor-piercing ammo into his assault rifle and took off the head of the guardians; however the turrets and the troopers kept the pressure on.

"Boss this is bad, we need a plan quick!" Garrus said. Tali nodded in agreement. Shepherd tossed a lift grenade, and caused the troopers to fly, he then blasted them with warp field.

"Tali, hack those turrets! Buy us time!"

"On it, Wayne" Tali said. She raised her omini-tool and as soon as the turrets activated, the turrets shot at the troopers, giving them time to regroup. For good measure, Tali also directed her drone to extend that time, while Garrus used his overload to stun them. Shepherd and team went back up top to check on Victus.

"Victus, how far are you? We can't do this forever!" Shepherd said.

"I'm almost there…shit!" Victus said.

Shepherd looked back at him. "What is it?"

"Cerberus has a proxy remote" he said.

"Meaning?" Tali spoke up.

"Meaning they can reset the firewalls, causing the trigger to be primed again" she said. "Victus has to be careful otherwise, he could accidentally start the bomb…"

"So how do we stop this?" Shepherd asked.

"All proxy remotes have a signal length up to five miles" Victus said.

Shepherd frowned. "That long…shit!"

"I can track the signal, but we need to be fast" Tali said.

"She's right, no doubt in my mind they'll try to activate the trigger you'll have to deactivate the signal"

Shepherd nodded. "Rookie, you're with me, Garrus…" the turian looked back and Shepherd threw his arc projector. "Give us cover" Garrus nodded and Shepherd and Tali tracked the trooper that had the remote. However Cerberus did not make it easy, as they used grenade and turrets to slow down the spectre and quarian. Victus took down the troopers and guardians that got close to Shepherd and Tali while Garrus played keep a way with the troopers and centurions tried to attack them directly. Shepherd and Tali follow the signal until around the cover they found an engineer trying to arm the bomb. Shepherd took aim for his head, however a bullet whizzed by Shepherd's head. Cerberus had brought snipers to make trouble, another bullet whizzed by and Shepherd and Tali took cover. The engineer took noticed and ran.

"Stop Shepherd, he's after me!" The engineer said. Shepherd and Tali went after the engineer while the Nemesis' aimed their sights at the couple from the ledges and took shots at them. Garrus overloaded the Nemesis' shields and Victus shot a concussive shot to knock them off the ledge. Tali and Shepherd chased after the engineer with the remote, until they cornered him. He turned around and held out the trigger. "Stay back, or all of us will die!" the engineer said.

Shepherd and Tali stopped and the engineer laughed. "The great Shepherd worried about a few dead krogan, and his disgusting alien lover…you and all of them should…die!" The stand-off lasted for minutes until they then heard the sound of something descending from the air. Shepherd looked up, a large white mass was heading for them, he pushed Tali out-of-the-way.

"Wayne!" Tali said alarmed. An Atlas mech, landed between them and aimed at Tali.

"Tali!"

"Disgusting alien, die!" The atlas was about to fire, but Victus and Garrus fired at the heavy mech. Shepherd got Tali and they got to cover, as the engineer ran away.

"You alright?" Tali nodded. "Shit, now we got two problems" Shepherd overloaded the atlas' shields and Tali shot at the heavy mech but it kept coming. The atlas fired at them, and Shepherd and Tali were boxed into cover. Garrus shot at the mech to get its attention, the mech fired on Garrus and Vicus as they went to the cover.

"Boss, get that bastard, we'll get him this guy!" Shepherd and Tali nodded and ran after the engineer. The old building was a winding maze; the engineer was trying to lose Shepherd and Tali while getting a good position to set off the bomb. However the couple was hot on his heels using the signal to track his movement. More troopers came out to face the couple; Shepherd tossed some lift grenades to get the troopers out-of-the-way. Tali took out her pistol and shot the engineer, and hit his turret pack his back, tripping him up. The engineer was on the ground with Tali and Shepherd holding him at gunpoint.

"End of the line, give up now"

"Fuck you, alien lover" The team then heard a beeping sound, and next an explosion knocking Shepherd and Tali back. Shepherd got up and helped Tali up, when the smoke cleared the only thing that was left was black ash and multiple body parts. Shepherd's com opened.

"Boss, what the hell happened? The bomb just triggered itself!" Garrus said.

"The fucking engineer decided to kill himself, Me and Rookie are coming back" Shepherd said. Shepherd and Tali went back to Garrus and Victus, the two turians had taken care of the atlas mech and the Lieutenant was working fast to stop the countdown. If the bomb goes off, there would be an all-out war between the turians and krogan. "How long do we have?"

"A minute and then…boom…" Garrus said grimly.

"Then what do we do?" Tali asked.

"There is one way…." Victus said

"What?" Shepherd asked.

"I'll have to manually remove the trigger" he said.

"Victus, that's crazy!" Garrus said. They then heard gunshots, Cerberus was back for more.

"We don't have time to argue, we need to stop this bomb, cover me!" Shepherd nodded and Victus started to climb up the bomb. He climbs up and around the bomb to remove the detonators manually, but by doing it, the supports of the bomb were becoming unstable. He clips down the leg to bring down the bomb, the leg shook, and Victus was hanging on desperately. He realized that this leaves the final detonator as the only thing keeping him from falling.

"Lieutenant!"

"Victory at…any…cost…" Victus said as he removes the detonator. The bomb shook and fell into the pit, Cerberus dug up and caused a huge explosion, it was done, the war between the krogan and the turians would not happen he would be able to keep the summit on track, but at a great cost.

_**The Shuttle**_

The ride back was a quiet one, even though they had succeeded, it didn't feel like a victory, not even close. The com opened. "Commander, I've got radio chatter coming from Krogan forces planetside" Joker said. "They're pissed; Wrex is trying his best to calm them down, what the hell happen down there?"

"The turians took a lot casualties, the primarch's son included…" Shepherd said solemnly.

"Understood, Commander, Joker out" Tali gripped his hand.

"I'm alright, rookie…"

"He never hesitated, he did his duty…" Garrus said.

Shepherd sighed. "How will the turians think of this?"

"Victus did a great thing, but it'll just be another moment in hierarchy history" Garrus said sadly. "Sacrifice in war is…expected and we're a hard people to please…"

"Living for the society, for the platoon, rather than the individual, it's all…expected."

Shepherd frowned. "He did what he had to….I am really getting sick of that saying…."

_**The Normandy**_

Shepherd went to the war room to give his report to Hackett. The Admiral told him about the krogan, not letting the turians in to recover the bomb. Shepherd was thankful that was all that was happening, considering what happened he was expecting something much worse. He then heard yelling in the other room. "Excuse me, Admiral; I have my own mess to clean up…"

Hackett nodded. "Of course, Commander, Hackett out"

Shepherd stepped out of the com room and saw Wrex yelling at Victus, the krogan was very angry, Shepherd hadn't seen him like this since he found out Saren's cure was a fake. "Damn pijack, I knew I couldn't trust you!" Wrex said. "Were you even going to tell me about a bomb on my homeworld?!"

"We couldn't risk another war, we had no choice!" Victus said.

Wrex growled. "Neutering us with the genophage wasn't enough?"

"The decision was made centuries ago. So much had change!"

"Apparently not enough…"

Shepherd frowned; this was neither the time nor the place for arguments. "ENOUGH!" Shepherd yelled. Wrex and Victus stopped yelling and looked at Shepherd as he came down the stairs. "You fucking kidding me?! You two are arguing over something that has been dealt with already, with the reapers still out there?!"

"Listen up and listen well, this war is bigger than your centuries old bullshit between" he said angrily. "Victus, you had a bomb on Tuchanka, and Wrex in the turian's place you would done the same damned thing!"

"Shepherd…"

"It's over! Lieutenant Victus died to make this right and I will not have you two shit over his sacrifice like this!" Victus and Wrex look at each other.

"You're right, Shepherd, we do have bigger enemies to fight, we'll keep it peaceful" Wrex looked at Victus. "…for now" the krogan walked away.

Shepherd stood at the terminal and sighed, Victus came over. "I understand your reservations before, Commander, but I hope you now understand the secrecy"

The spectre frowned. "Secrets get people killed, you just learn that the hard way" Shepherd said.

"Yes…the hardest lesson I've ever learned" Victus said sadly. He died with respect of his men, something any father would proud of…."

"Yes sir…" he said walking away.

_**Wrex**_

Wrex was in the cargo hold still fuming about the Primarch's decision to hide the bomb from his people. James saw him and talked to him, and introduced the krogan to the concept of a punching bag. A few hits on the bag, and he felt better, he was starting to see how humans are so mellow despite being almost as violent as them.

"Heh, we should use more of these…" Wrex said. His comm beeped. "What is it?"

"Wrex"

"Grunt, how goes the hunt?" he asked.

Grunt gave a toothy grin. "Better than we thought…" he said. "No doubts about it, it's the old…" There was then a sound of fighting and the image cut off abruptly.

Wrex eyes went wide and opened his comm. "Shepherd, I need to talk to you…"


	31. Chapter 27: Return of the Rachni pt1

**Chapter 27: Return of the Rachni pt1**

_**The Normandy**_

Shepherd went to meet Wrex, he didn't know what the krogan wanted with him, but he was pretty sure it was about the bomb. Shepherd went down to the shuttle bay, and saw Wrex sitting on the boxes waiting for the spectre. "Wrex, I swear to god if this is about the bomb…"

"It's not about the bomb, though I'm still pissed about it" He said. "I just lost contact with my scouts"

Shepherd looked at him. "Scouts?"

"Yeah, I sent them out to scan the enemies' strength, they didn't find anything until they did" Wrex said. He then opened a recording and heard a horrifying screeching sound, one that they recognized. Shepherd's eyes went wide.

"Rachni?!" The rachni, the race that almost ended galactic civilization before humans even got out of caves. Three years ago, they discovered the rachni on Binthu being experimented on by Cerberus, later the team found out where the rachni came from…a lone queen's egg on Noveria. Saren had sent Liara's mother, Matriarch Benezia, to pluck information about the Mu relay from the queen, it ended in Benezia'a death and out of pity Shepherd released the queen. A year ago, he had met up with an asari representing the rachni, it was her that revealed the rachni's true nature…a naturally peaceful race that was manipulated into starting the rachni wars.

"Seems so…"

"But that can't be, the last time I talked to the queen, she was preparing for the reapers…"

Wrex snorted. "Seems she had other plans…anyway I was wondering…"

"I'll go look for your scouts, I'm quite curious myself" Shepherd said.

Wrex smirked. "Heh, I knew you would be up for a good fight, here was their last location"

_Although Utukku is habitable, extreme temperatures and violent weather have discouraged colonization. Because the planet has little liquid water to retain heat, surface temperatures regularly oscillate between 70 C to -60 C. Utukku's vegetation is notable for having evolved flexible central stalks to survive high-speed winds as well as leathery leaves to shrug off the planet's frequent sandstorms. Animal life is mostly confined to the planet's small oceans. Utukku has few valuable mineral. – Codex_

The Normandy released the Kodiak and began its decent upon the planet. According to Wrex the scout has been there awhile looking into the activity at the rachni relay. Shepherd was still troubled by this, the last time he saw the queen her race was at the brink…if he wanted to he could have wiped them out. Even for a quick breeding race like the rachni, three years was not enough to restore a race, and she would not risk putting her children in danger. "Has there been any change, Commander?" Javik asked.

"Yeah, some of the scout team was able to make it out" Shepherd said. "They'll be our back up at the drop point, Arlakh Company, krogan commandos" EDI gave them more information on Arlakh Company, they were toughest of the tough, they were feared for their brutality during the Krogan Rebellions. However, under the leadership of Wrex, Arlakh Company was going the 'gentler' route; months ago they made news for liberating a colony from Batarian pirates.

"Cool, we'll need some heavy hitters if we're dealing with rachni" James said. "Still hard to believe they still exist"

"Yeah….that may be on me…."Shepherd said.

James raised a brow. "How?"

Shepherd rubbed his neck sheepishly. "I may have released the queen three years ago…"

"What?!"

"Oh look, the drop point, let's finish this later…" The shuttle landed in a canyon near a krogan camp, the team got out and met with the Krogan commandos. There was krogan in sliver and red armor, there was no doubt in the team's mind that he was the leader, he turned around and Shepherd recognizes him.

"Grunt?"

"Battlemaster?! Heh Battlemaster! Ha-ha-ha-ha!" Grunt charged and got Shepherd in a bear hug. The spectre felt the air squeezed out of him as Grunt lifted him up. "I knew those bastards couldn't keep you in the brig for long"

"Well…he's friendly…" James said.

"This child….a leader…? Absurd…" Javik said.

"Uh, Grunt...? I'm glad…to see you…too…but…can't breathe…" Shepherd strained. Grunt let him go and Shepherd was able to breathe. The spectre was glad; Grunt was still his old self it seemed Wrex left out that Grunt was leader of Arlakh Company. But it was a pleasant surprise, Grunt had come a long way since the tank when he was like a child in need of direction. "What are you doing here?"

"I could ask you the same question…"

"Wrex sent me here to help, how the hell did you get your own squad, anyway?"

Grunt smirked. "By being the toughest, and since I'm the toughest, I got the strongest, baddest squad" he said looking back. "They're tough, think they're invincible. Reckless but effective"

"Sounds familiar, I bet some didn't like a tank-bred in charge"

"And their complaints were met…with my fists…" Grunt was not kidding; he had a lot of scars on his plate. Krogan was not known for holding back, holding back meant weakness however if one is able to last they would find nothing but respect.

James whistled. "Sounds like a krogan I used to know" he said.

"You were a pain in the ass, Grunt, but you were damned good soldier, if your men are like you, we'll get through just fine" Shepherd said with a smirk. "So what's going on?"

"Rachni, at least I think it is…damned place was too dark to see…" Grunt then gave a feral grin. "If it is, I can't wait…."

"I see you're the one, who occupied my quarters on the Normandy, you left your mark" Javik said. Grunt looked at him.

Who is this, Shepherd?"

"This is Javik, he's a prothean"

Javik crossed his arms. "You shouldn't be so anxious to face the rachni. They were formidable opponents, even to my people" Grunt looked at Shepherd, hoping for an explanation.

Shepherd sighed. "Long story…"

Grunt snorted. "Whatever you say…"

"So what do we do?" James asked.

"Our scans show a tunnel down to a central point, I think it's a nest" Grunt said.

"Going in head-on would be foolhardy, reckless" Javik said. Grunt just gave cruel smirk; the young krogan liked the direct approach. Javik scoffed. "Primitives…"

"Aralakh Company…move out!" The krogans nodded and walked away. "Shepherd, grab what you need, and meet us at camp ahead" Shepherd nodded.

"So that was Grunt, huh? You worked with some crazy fuckers" James said.

"You have no idea…" Shepherd and team grabbed what they needed and went to meet with Grunt, as they walked the saw the camp was in rough order. The barrocks were trashed, glass was all over the place, and there were some dead krogan that littered the ground. From the size of the camp, the scouts must have had a total of twenty before whatever attacked them cut into their numbers. "Talk about a warzone…"

"Decimated more like, the krogan are overconfident, it's their weakness" Javik said.

"They don't lack for spirit though…" They met with Grunt and his men near a lopsided barrack.

"Ready to go?" Shepherd and team nodded, they walked into the barracks, on the other side was an entry way into the caverns when they walked towards the end the barracks shook. Shepherd and team held on to the walls of the barracks until the barracks slid down into the cavern. The force of the barrocks landing made the team lose their grip and they rolled down to the ground. The team came to; they were battered, but alive…somehow.

"Everyone okay?"

"Yeah, other than the ringing in my head, I'm fine"

"Ready for combat, Commander" Shepherd looked up, ridge was steep there was no way they were going to be able to climb back up. Ahead of them, was a large dark cavern, maybe they could find the exit somewhere in there. Grunt shouted from the ledge, Grunt and his men were all safe.

"Battlemaster, you alive?"

"Yeah, by a stroke of luck…" Shepherd said. "Keep in radio contact, we'll move forward"

"Right, we'll meet you down there" The krogan went to find another way in, the team went into the tunnel, at the entrance was a dead krogan and a barrier. Shepherd investigated the webbing, it was black and solid in the right light you could blue lights shimmering.

"Freaky, it's like a spider web…" James said.

"It is more than that human, look at the circuitry, it is reaper tech" Javik said. Shepherd opened his com.

"Grunt, we found a body of a scout, dead for a few hours"

"Our enemy is formidable, can't wait" Shepherd took out his gun and shot at the web, it did not even budge from the force, he then ordered the team to open fire on the web when the smoke cleared the web was still there. Not even Shepherd's and Javik's biotic could get it to fall. Shepherd contacted Grunt; since he was here longer the krogan could help them.

"Grunt, got some weird webbing here…very tough, not even my biotics can break it"

"We encountered the same thing earlier; it weak against flames, the scout should have a firestorm with him." Shepherd went to the dead krogan and saw a bright yellow weapon near him. He picked it up and pulled the trigger; the stream of flames came out of the weapon and enveloped the web. The heat hardened the web, and it crackled until it broke and collapsed on the ground. "Cool, we're going ahead" The team went further in and was in a huge cavern, Grunt was right, it was very dark. Not only it was dark, it was very quiet, they could run into a husk and not know it was there.

"We're at a disadvantage, Commander" Javik said.

Shepherd nodded. "Everyone night mode" he said. With the press of the button, the visor changed to a dark green and the team could see much clearly than before. Lia had worked all night to incorporate this function into everyone's helmets, now instead of using a flashlight and giving away their location; they could see the enemy clearly and gain an advantage in the dark.

"Nice, my girl's a genius" James said with a smirk.

"Yes, the quarian's upgrades are quite useful" They moved throughout the cavern, the strange webbing from earlier was everywhere. They then heard something, and saw something scurry along the ground. They didn't get a good look at it, but it looked like one a rachni worker, except it was white and not green. "Movement"

"Yeah, everyone be ready" They went up a ledge and saw some strange items on the ground. Shepherd went to examine them, as soon as he got close; the pods changed color and then popped. The excess flew towards Shepherd and drained half his shields, the spectre backed up as more of the pods popped.

"What the hell are those things?" James asked.

"Don't know, look like eggs, except…" Shepherd said.

"Laced with reaper tech and programmed like mines if one get close" Javik said. "We should burn them at a distance" Shepherd nodded and burns the eggs causing them to be pop like balloons. Once they were cleared, they went further in and saw wires and tech all over the caverns. They went down a ledge and found they were blocked by a metal wall, Shepherd looked for a way in while Javik and James was on the lookout.

"What hell are the reapers doing here? This planet is not even populated." James said.

"I thought that would be more obvious, human, they're breeding rachni soldiers"

"And you know this how?"

"Because my people did the same thing 50,000 years ago" Javik said.

James eyes went wide. "What?!"

"We chose the most violent and clever of the queens, and bred them for that trait to destroy our enemies"

"I'm sensing a 'but then'" James said.

"We underestimated how violent and clever they were, and they were swiftly dealt with, or so we thought" Javik said. "It seems they are simply re-using a tactic of my people, a pity we are about to sabotaged their efforts" The metal wall went down and Shepherd walked over to the team.

"Let's go" The team went down to another area, and heard growling. Over to the far wall was an insect creature, they were rachni, but they were full of wires and mounted cannons, the rachni-husks jumped off the wall and took aim and fired on the team as they got to cover. "Grunt, you were right, rachni, reaper modified rachni, watch your back"

"Yeah, we just met them, they're strong I'm going to enjoy this" he said.

"So glad he's having fun…" James said sarcastically. They then saw machines whirl to like as it emitted a purple light, more growling was heard as some Cannibals and husks came from behind the rock formations. As they move to their positions, the purple light enveloped them, according to Javik, the reapers sometime put up barrier engines to reinforce a strategically important location like this rachni nest. James threw a frag grenade at the approaching husks, and blew them away when the smoke cleared they were still coming after them. Javik fired his particle rifle at the legs of the husks, cutting them in half, and then destroyed the barrier engine. Shepherd blasted the ravager with an incineration blast damaging rachni-husk and killing the Cannibals. Shepherd shot its sack, it ruptured spilling those little white rachni from earlier. "What hell are those?"

"Don't know, don't care, I just don't want them to touch me" Shepherd said. "Javik"

The prothean nodded and let loose his dark channel, instantly killing the swarmers. "Along the far wall, Commander, husks" More husks came at the team, clawing wildly at them, this was a problem as the ravagers were targeting the team and they had to deal with the husks.

"Vega, frag grenades, get those ravagers off us" James nodded and threw some grenades at the rachni husk and stunned them. Shepherd suspended the husks in the air and Javik shot them with his particle rifle. They then had their sights on the ravager and killed it, the battle was done, for now.

"_Ay! Dios mio!_ Those putas were tough" James said breathless.

"Welcome to the big leagues, Vega" Shepherd joked. "Grunt, how are things on your end?"

"All dead, but lost a krogan to a sink hole, bad way to go" Grunt said. "At least the enemies entertaining" Shepherd shook his head.

"Commander, more eggs, we are on the right path" Javik said.

Shepherd nodded. "Right, time to exterminate"

_**Review and Comment are welcomed. **_


	32. Chapter 28: Return of the Rachni pt2

**Chapter 28: Return of the Rachni pt2**

The team continued on their way, there were more eggs in the way, but they didn't seem like the spore pods earlier until the team got closer…they weren't mines like the last ones, they were eggs that spawned swarmers. These swarmers were different from the ones the ravergers sent out; they were walking bombs like regular rachni workers. The team destroyed the eggs from a distance clearing the way. The team jumped over the next ledge where they found more webs, Shepherd burned the webs leading into a canyon. There was a narrow path upwards, and they followed it careful not to fall, once the team reached the top…they stopped and looked to their left, a black-grey trident shaped metal was sticking out a ledge. "The reapers have left their mark" Javik said.

"Agreed" Shepherd said.

"If they're trying so hard to keep us out, it must be more valuable than we thought" James said.

"I'm not surprised; we've seen the fire power of that rachni-husk" Shepherd said. "If more of those things get out, we're in trouble" They got to a blocked door ahead of them, Shepherd looked for the device lowering the door. Shepherd took out the webbing past the door and the team went forward, they hear growls come from deep within the chamber, however their attention was changed when bits rock came down above them. Shepherd pushed James and Javik out the way and then jumped forward as the ceiling collapsed and closed off their previous path.

"Well we're not going back that way…"

Shepherd nodded. "Then we find another exit, come on" Shepherd's comm beeped.

"Battlemaster, what was that noise? It sounded bad" Grunt said

"Cave in, we're alright"

"Good, it would have been a pain to dig you out"

"That almost hurt, Grunt"

"Yeah, yeah" he said. "How far are you?"

"I think we're getting close to the source, prepare for any hostiles" Shepherd said.

"Got it" The team went up an upward path ahead where they found more spore pods, along with more webs. They could hear sounds of screeches and the scattering of little creatures as they walked farther in. They turned the corner, and they were met with a lone husk, the feral creature rushed the team ready to fight, James blasted it back with his carnage and killed it instantly. Shepherd burned some webs that was behind the dead husk and found a dead krogan, James checked the body there was datapad with a recording on it.

"Looks like a message, to an asari named Ereba on the Citadel" Shepherd looked at him and frowned.

"Ereba?"

"Yeah, you know her?"

Shepherd nodded. "I talked to her on Illum, a year ago, she was having problem with her boyfriend, and they must have gotten back together" he said.

James shook his head. "Another life ruined by the reapers…"

"Yeah, let's make sure his sacrifice was not in vain" James and Javik nodded and went farther in, and jumped down into a large room. The team took off their night vision as the room was well lit, sound of running water could be heard throughout the caverns. The tops of the rocky walls were littered by reaper tech; they reached the middle and then heard a growl. "Incoming!" Machines started to hum and glow purple as husks charged at them, right behind the husks were cannibals and ravagers giving long-range support. Shepherd overloaded the husk's barrier, which stunned its allies while James blasted them back with his shotgun. The Cannibals and ravagers opened fired, and the team went back to cover.

James and Javik threw some grenades to kill the Cannibals, but the ravagers took shots at them. Javik marked the ravager with his dark channel, allowing Shepherd to throw a warp fields to take out the ravagers. The team went forward until they heard another barrier engine start humming and more Cannibals and ravagers came out to fight. Javik destroyed the barrier engines before the husks could reach them, the Cannibals threw out grenades and scattered the team while the ravagers opened fired. The heavy artillery of the rachi-husks drained James and Shepherd's shield, while Javik was able to make it to cover unscathed. The prothean took out the Cannibals with his rifle, and threw grenades at the ravergers. Shepherd and James recharged their shields and joined into the fray, James hit the ravagers with his incendiary-enhanced assault rifle from the side burning their armor. Shepherd and Javik attacked with their biotics, whittling away the armor of the rachni-husk until it died. After the battle, Shepherd's com opened.

"We must be getting close, Shepherd. Some heavy fighting. Tough bastards!" Grunt said.

"casualties?" Shepherd asked.

"It's fine, krogan fight better angry"

They jump across the chasm, taking out some more pods, and further up the hill, they found another dead scout. They jumped across ledges, careful to not slip due to it being slippery from the underground river. James spoke up. "There's something I don't get, I've always heard rachni preferred poisonous environments, you know so no one would bother them" he said. "This planet is breathable"

"The reapers have altered more than just their appearance" Javik said. "Rachni reproduce at an alarming rates, altering them to live anywhere, only increases their birth rates"

"Not on my watch" The team climbed up a series of ledges and jumped across a second gap and head down the hill, when they turned the corner they saw Grunt and his team fighting against the ravagers. Grunt charge the ravager closest to them while his men gave him covering fire, the young krogan pushed back while the rachni-husk's leg tried swiping at him. Grunt growled and caught one of the legs and tore it out, he then sidestepped the ravager and lift up and threw it into the ravine below. The ravager took fire at Grunt while he retreated to cover, there was too many of them to fight….he opened his com.

"Shepherd we're blocked and getting overrun!" Grunt said.

"Hang on, I'm on it!"

"Move it Shepherd!" The team went farther in, and was met with more eggs that hatched into the exploding swarmers; they killed them before they got close to them. They made it into a cavern with a reaper node; Shepherd shot it, opening a pathway in the front and back. They saw Grunt and his team entering the room with the ravagers following them, Shepherd and his team joined them to push them until they retreated. They were safe…for now.

"Thanks Shepherd, the rachni have backed off for now, but they can smell our wounds" Grunt said. "Any worth enemy would regroup and finish us. Soon"

"I know, they must know we're getting close"

Grunt nodded. "We'll dig in here, kill anything that moves, buy you some time" Shepherd nodded and walked forward and stopped.

"Good luck"

Grunt chuckled. "Don't need luck, I have ammo" he said. "Krogan, get ready!" The team walked forward and was met as narrow passage; they went in one by one and entered a new area. To the distance, they could see something huge in the horizon, they couldn't make it out but it looked vaguely insect like.

"What is that?" James asked. Shepherd opened his com.

"Grunt, we located the central chamber"

"Good, we got your back" Shepherd and team jumped down to the floor below, as soon as they all landed a reaper barricade came up to their left and then to their right. The reapers were trying to get to the center of the chamber.

"Move it!" They ran for the other side with more and more barriers trying to block their access, a barrier appeared ahead of them and blocked them. "Damn it!" Shepherd went to look for the node, it was on the ledge near barrier…when he destroyed the node the path was opened where they were met with screeches and growls. The first's ones up was husks.

"Here they come, let's do this!" James said.

"Reaper blood will be spilled!" Javik said.

"This is it people, charge!" Shepherd ordered. The husks flooded the area, and were wiped out by their grenades. Javik marked the ravagers with his dark channel and Shepherd put them down with his warp field. When the husk fell, the Cannibals came to feast on their bodies; James shot the Cannibals with his Carnage and threw some more frag grenades. When they killed the Cannibals, ravagers was the last line of defense to stop them from destroying the node. Shepherd took one side while James and Javik the other to flank the ravager, lucky for them as powerful as the rachni-husk was they were not suited for short-range plus they were slow. Once it was dead, Shepherd destroyed the node.

"Commander, more are coming!" Javik said running to cover. James and Shepherd followed the prothean to cover as the husks came rushing in. Shepherd took out two husks with his throw field, while James blasted the last on with his shotgun. The Cannibal was next, and they threw grenades at the team making them scatter. Javik marked them with Dark channel while Shepherd tossed a warp field causing a biotic burst that took out its allies surrounding it. James went up and tossed grenades at the approaching ravager, the large human went to cover when the ravager retaliated. Shepherd and Javik blasted the ravager to get the heat off James. Shepherd burned the ravagers armor, while Javik and James opened fired killing it. Shepherd destroyed the node.

"More enemies on the other side!"

"Damn…don't they know the meaning of rest…?" James asked breathlessly. Out of the ground came three ravagers, while two Cannibals covered them. Shepherd took out his blackstorm projector and fired at the ravager; the black hole sucked in the rachni husks and caused an explosion. James ripped the Cannibals apart with his Carnage, Javik went to the node and destroyed it. The com opened.

"Shepherd, the rachni are backing off!" Grunt said. "Whatever spooked them won't last, finish the job"

"Copy that" The last barrier fell, and the team entered the last area. "Holy…" Connected to the wires was the rachni queen, the same queen Shepherd released three years ago.

_**Three years ago**_

_"Mother!" Liara cried out. "I... don't leave! Fight him!"_

_"You've always made me proud, Liara," Benezia said with tears in her face. "I love you, I'm sorry I've never told you enough…." Shepherd reluctantly raised his gun and fired. The bullet struck the asari in the heart and she fell with a great thud._

_"Mother!" Liara cried out. She ran towards her, and knelled besides her. "No! You can't... you can't just leave me here. No..." The older asari weakly placed her hand on the young asari's face, wiping away her tears._

_"Goodnight little wing, I will see you again at the dawn." Benezia said softly. She coughed up her violet blood, she wouldn't have long now. She gazed up at the spectre. "Shepherd, tell my sister, I'm sorry for everything…." Shepherd nodded and the Matriarch smiled as her hand fell from her daughter's face as her eyes finally closed. Liara embraced her mother and started crying._

_Ash walked towards her. She laid a hand on her shoulder, and gently pulled her up. She fell into her arms, and Ash hugged her. Liara continued crying on the human's shoulders. "Shh, we're all here for you." Ash said softly. Shepherd went to the controls and saw the giant rachni queen._

_"Usually when I see you creatures, I kill you without a second thought" he said. "But-"he looked back at the dead matriarch and her crying daughter. "There's been enough blood, enough sadness for today" He released the controls holding the queen and opened the door. The rachni looked back almost as if it was thanking him for his mercy. The queen ran into the Noverian wilderness._

_"Are you sure that was the right move, skipper?" Ash asked softly._

_Shepherd sighed. "I don't know I just want to put this place behind us" he said._

**_Now_**

"That's the queen?" James asked.

"Yeah…" Shepherd said. The krogan corpse next to them started to talk, it was an ability the queen had. She could co-opt someone's body to speak to communicate with races that could speak their language; he found that out the hard way when he talked to the representative back on Illium. Apparently that same ability can work on corpses also…

"Si…lence…" she said. "The…maddening sour note has ceased"

"That's freaky…"

"Hm, it seems they have perfected the ability we engineered into them" Javik said. The queen looked at Shepherd.

"We remember…you…the one who sings of mercy…" the queen said. "The children…they are silent…hollow…"

"I know we had to kill them way back" Shepherd said. "What happened? How did the reapers get you?"

"They came, destroying our nests, they took our children…take them to war" the queen said. "They die alone, silent, faraway"

"You want revenge"

"Yes, we started new home, new children, harmony" she said. "They have defiled us, harmed us, we now sing the song of war!"

"Will you join us?"

"Yes, your song fights the sour notes of the machines, it gives us hope" The queen said. "We hear the machines, but they can't control us, free us and we shall fight for you" Shepherd comm opened.

"Shepherd, we're out of time!" Grunt said. "The enemies are getting restless"

Shepherd nodded. "Grunt, get your team and get out of here"

"What about you?" Shepherd looked at the queen and then the light above her, an opening big enough for the rachni to go through. A straight shot up would take them out of the caverns where they could call Cortez. Shepherd's thoughts were interrupted by the sound of screeching, the ravagers were coming.

"We'll take the express way"

"Understood, Aralakh Company out!"

Shepherd looked at the queen. "Can you carry us out?" he asked.

"Yes, but you must free us…" Shepherd nodded and shot the final node and the queen was freed. The screeching became even louder. "Quickly, we must flee!"

"You heard the lady, let's go!" Shepherd and team climbed on the queen's back.

"God this weird…" James said.

"Would you rather be creeped out or dead?"

"Good point" The ravager flooded in as the queen climbed out of the cavern, the rachni husks was hot on their heels.

"Drop the remaining the grenades, slow them down!" James and Javik nodded and dropped their remaining the grenades, causing explosions and a rock slide. The team made it out the cavern; all they heard last was the screams of reaper children. Shepherd called Cortez, Aralakh Company had survived and was going back to Tuchanka, and the rachni queen was gone, preparing for the final battle, the team went back to the Normandy.

_**The Normandy**_

"I'm reviewing your report on the rachni situation, Commander" Hackett said. "This could have gotten complicated, fast"

"I hope you know what you are doing, cutting a deal with the rachni queen. "We got burned last time"

"She owes me, plus she wants payback, same as we do, when it's time she'll come" Shepherd said. "With an army"

"Alright, I'm trusting your instincts, Commander" he said. "At least, we cut the reaper's supply of rachni and additional krogan support. I call that a victory"

"Good job, Commander, Hackett out" Shepherd went out of the comm room and Mordin went to meet him.

"Mordin, what can I do for you?"

"It is completed, Shepherd, we can go when ever you want"

Shepherd smirked and nodded. "EDI, contact the Primarch and Wrex, we need a game plan"

"Of course Commander"

_**The Battle for Tuchunka begins! Next time!**_

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	33. Chapter 29a: Battle for Tuchanka pt1

**Chapter 29a: Battle for Tuchnaka pt1**

**The Normandy**

Wrex came in to the war room, he had heard news that the genophage cure completed, which was good for the krogan, no more needles being stuck into him. When he came in, Shepherd, Victus, and Mordin were around holographic display; the spectre looked at him and nodded. "Okay, now that Wrex is here, we need to figure out how to get the cure to the krogan."

Wrex held up his hand. "Wait just a minute, will the cure ever work? I don't want to know that I sat here for hours, only to find it was for nothing…" he said.

Shepherd looked at the salarian. "Mordin?"

"Tests verified. Results promising" Mordin said. "As to get the cure to the whole race, we can us this…" Mordin went to the console and pulled up the image of a tower, it was called the Shroud, a salarian construct on the surface of Tuchanka. It was originally built to stabilize the atmosphere of Tuchanka due to the self-induced nuclear winter of the krogan.

The Shroud was deployed through the use of a number of ground-based towers, which acted as mass-drivers that launched the Shroud's components into orbit. Later, all but one of these towers was destroyed; this remaining tower became known as the Shroud, although the label is technically incorrect. The Shroud tower was repurposed to disperse particles and chemicals into Tuchanka's atmosphere, primarily for climate-control purposes. After Mordin finished explaining, he looked at Victus. "Also used by turian…."

Shepherd and Wrex looked at Primarch Victus who had an uncomfortable look on his face. "We used it to secretly spread the genophage virus; it ended the Krogan Rebellons…" Victus said sheepishly.

Wrex snorted and crossed his arms, after the whole thing with the bomb he was not very surprised about this fact. "I'd be careful who you say that to"

"Sometimes I understand why krogan want to shoot everything in sight" Shepherd said dryly.

"Those were desperate times…"

"Yes, yes, but useful now. Original strain in the shroud facility, delete the strain and input the cure" Mordin said. "Will be able to blanket whole planet with cure"

Wrex chuckled. "You clever little pyjack, that our way in, right there"

Shepherd smirked. "Everyone to your places" he said. "Joker, get us to Tuchanka, ASAP!"

"Understood Commander"

_Tuchanka, the krogan homeworld, boasts extreme temperatures, virulent diseases, and predatory fauna. Around 1900 BCE, the krogan discovered atomic weapons and promptly sent their planet into a nuclear winter. The majority of the population retreated to underground bunkers, and krogan culture slipped into a dark age dominated by tribal clans._

_In 80 CE, decades into the Rachni Wars, the Salarian Union made first contact with the primitive krogan and initiated a "cultural uplift" to shape them into a modern army capable of confronting the rachni. During this uplift, the salarians constructed the Shroud facility on Tuchanka to shield the planet from harmful forms of solar radiation. Later, during the Krogan Rebellions, reproductive rates were curtailed by the genophage, ensuring the krogan remained a species in decline-and Tuchanka a desolate wasteland.-Codex_

The Normandy breached the surface of Tuchanka heading for the Shroud facility, for the most part it was smooth sailing, maybe for once this would be a clean mission for once….until the alarms went off. The Normandy sent out probes to scan the area, when the data came back…Joker paled and opened the com. "All hands, full stop! Hostiles detected at the landing coördinates" Joker said.

The Normandy crew was scrambling to their positions as Shepherd walked into the cockpit. "What do you got?"

"A reaper near the Shroud. No way can we land there by shuttle"

"Okay, call everyone to war room; keep an eye on the Shroud"

"Got it" The group met in the War Room, to discuss a plan of action, Shepherd was the last to come in. On the holographic display was the shroud and a reaper. According to Mordin, it was a new kind of reaper designed to poison Tuchanka's atmosphere, the reapers knew how much trouble the krogan entering the war would be for them and was trying to nip this problem in the bud.

Mordin took a deep breath. "Problematic…" Mordin said.

Wrex frowned and slammed his fist on the console. "Bastards…my people have come too far for this…." He seethed.

"Chill Wrex, we'll find away" Shepherd said. "Primarch, we'll need your help, think you can spare the troops?"

"I'll try, though it could be problematic. The reports from Palaven have been catastrophic, to say the least" Victus said. "What do you have in mind?"

Shepherd pressed a few buttons on the console and the image changed with the turian cruiser and krogan tanks on the ground. "A two prong attack, your people will attack from the air, at the same time, Wrex, your people will attack from the ground" he said. "Draw it away from the tower"

"Yes, while they distract them, a small team can get through to the Shroud, and finish the cure" Mordin said. "Eve will need to come will us"

Shepherd nodded. "This won't be easy, we've never faced a reaper up close like is, everyone on board?"

Wrex slammed his fist together. "You know I won't run from a good fight, I'm with you Shepherd"

"I am with you too" Victus said. Mordin just nodded. They went to their places, Shepherd was about to, also, but had gotten a call from his omni-tool. Shepherd opened his tool to find the dalatrass on the other end.

"Dalatrass?" Shepherd asked. "What do you want?"

"We know you reached Tuchanka" Linron said.

Shepherd frowned. "Do you now?"

"And by now, I imagine Mordin Solus has proposed using the Shroud"

"Get to the point, what do you want?" Shepherd asked impatiently.

"You can't allow diplomatic pressures of this war to cloud your judgment" Linron said. "You really believe curing the genophage will end the genophage?"

"It's a start…" Shepherd asked. "Whether you like or not we need them"

"No you're wrong, the krogan will reproduce out of control and they will restart the rebellions"

"I don't believe that, Wrex and Eve will stop it" Shepherd said. "And I trust their word"

"They're only two krogan against millions of angry ones, they can't keep them all in check" Linron said. "But I have another plan…" She states to Shepherd that any attempts at curing the genophage will be in vain, revealing that her operatives sabotaged the Shroud facility needed to disperse the cure years ago. In exchange for keeping the sabotage a secret, she pledges the support of the salarians' First Fleet as well as their finest scientific minds to aid in the construction of the Crucible. "Let Urdnot Wrex believe you fulfilled your promise" Linron said. "And in return, you get the full support of the Salarian Union for your war, not bad trade, if I do say myself"

"Who the fuck you think I am?!" Shepherd asked angrily.

"Excuse me…?"

"You must think I'm that desperate or fucking shallow, to do that to a friend" Shepherd said walking away. "I got news for you, fuck off!"

The Dalatrass glared at him. "You foolish ape! You would be dooming the entire galaxy again"

"Like you, with the Yahg?"

Linron frowned. "What do you mean?"

Shepherd went back to face her. "Don't play stupid, I read the data on Sur'kesh, your people are planning on uplifting the Yahg, a race more dangerous than the Krogan" he said. "You say I'm dooming the galaxy, but you're doing it yourself, you fucking hypocrite!"

"Those are classified!"

The spectre narrowed his eyes at her, and Linron instantly shut up. "Let me make this very clear, you get in my way and I will leak this to the public…" Shepherd said.

Linron eyes went wide; Shepherd was even more dangerous than she thought…if the spectre revealed this information to the rest the council, not only would the Salarian Union would be kicked off the Council…they would be pariahs on the same level as the quarians, and krogan…a laughing stock. "Y…you wouldn't!"

"This isn't a threat, Dalatrass…. it is a promise" he said coldly. "This conversation is over" The image faded and Shepherd went to the shuttle bay where Wrex was waiting for him in the Kodiak.

"There you are. Where were you?" Wrex asked.

"Putting a bitch in her place, let's go"

**Shuttle**

As the shuttle went down to the surface, Wrex announced that he sent word for the krogan clans to assemble at the Hollows, a sacred krogan meeting ground. "We land there and take a convoy against the reapers" he then smirked. "This will be the defining moment of krogan history"

Mordin crossed his arms. "Krogan history full of defining moments, mostly bloody, hope this time better" Wrex grumbled and took a seat, Eve looked at Shepherd.

"Commander, what's wrong? You look upset" she said.

"I got a message from the…" The comm then opened, a rough voice spoke up.

"Wrex, its Wrev! The Reapers are already at the hollows! Come out guns blazing!"

"Hang on tight! We're coming in!" Cortez said. The shuttle came in for a landing, Wrex opened the door and a Husk lunged at the krogan only to eat a face full of shotgun.

"Shepherd, keep them away from the female, I'll sort out what happening with the other clams" Wrex said. Shepherd nodded and entered the hollows. All around them, the krogans were fighting off the husk hordes, the hollows were flooded by the reaper slaves. One of the krogan punched the head off the husks, until the husks overwhelmed him until they fell into the ravine below. Once that was done, they focused their attention on the team.

"Those are a lot of husks…" Jacob said.

Kasumi elbows Jacob playfully. "Nothing we haven't handed before, Blur…" she said.

Jacob groaned, it was a little nickname that James gave him when he saw Jacob's biotic charge in action. "I really wish you wouldn't call me that…"

Shepherd spoke up. "Here they come, Jacob…" Jacob nodded and charged down the stairs, knocking the husks aside while Shepherd and Kasumi followed. Once in the center, husk surrounded them and charge at them. "Clear the stage, leave nothing standing!" Kasumi used her submission net to lock down the husks, that stunned the other husks around them while Shepherd threw them off the ledge. Jacob was charging the husks and blasting them in the head with his shotgun. When the husks came at Jacob from behind, Kasumi came in and smashed it from the side with her Shadow Strike.

Jacob smirked. "Thanks, Slick…"

"Don't you start…" Kasumi said annoyed before disappearing. The husks came at Shepherd and he activated his omni-blade from his geth arm and went to slicing the enemy up. He then grabbed the husk by the face and crushed it in his hands. A husk grabbed the spectre from behind, and then another grabbed him from the front and then more of them came until Shepherd glowed blue and blasted off him.

"Jacob, finish this" Jacob nodded and slammed his fist on the ground blasting the husks with great force killing them instantly. After a while the battle ended, the door up the stairs open with Wrex, Mordin and other Krogan. They went to the team.

"Nice one, Shepherd, They'll sing battle songs about this someday"

"Krogan can sing, who knew?" Kasumi said. Jacob just shrugged, around the Hollows krogan gathered up top to hear what the Wrex was saying. The krogan came a long way from the freelance merc he met three years ago…now he was leader of the krogan people.

"This is the moment we've been waiting for, reaper blood has finally soaked our soil" Wrex said. The krogan gave a huge roar.

"Wrex, we need to get to the Shroud, the airstrike will be here soon" Shepherd said.

"Eve's safe, Shepherd, vitals are strong" A voice then spoke up, it was the same voice from the com.

"What's a salarian doing here?" A krogan in brown and silver armor came up, he had a yellowish-green crest, and he looked very similar to Wrex, just angrier. "Nobody told me about this!" Wrex frowned and walked towards him; from the growl they heard it was obvious he wasn't fond of the new krogan.

"Multiple krogan, Problematic"

"Who are you?" Shepherd asked.

The krogan looked at Shepherd and scoffed. "Urdnot Wreav, human, broodbrother of our….he then looked at Wrex with disgust..."illustrious leader"

Wrex snorted. "Wreav and I share the same mother, and luckily nothing else"

"Which I'm thankful for, I remember what it was like to be a true krogan" Wreav said. "You show weakness, by having these aliens here, Wrex" Shepherd shook his head, while Wreav shared Wrex's blood…he sure as hell didn't have his brother's vision. Wreav was looking for a fight, not a future for his people…the spectre shuddered to think what the krogan would be like under his control…

"We flay our enemies alive, in a pool of their own blood, not invite him in our homes" he said looking at Mordin. Shepherd stood in front of Mordin as Wreav approached.

"Back off Wreav, or you'll be lying in a pool of blood yourself" Shepherd said coldly.

Wreav glared at Shepherd, not amused at this small human challenging them. "Is that a threat, human?"

Shepherd glowed blue. "No it's a promise" Wrex then head-butted Wreav.

"You forget your place, Wreav, I'm leader not you" Wreav and the other krogan growled.

"Is that so? Then maybe I'll just take it!" Wreav said taking out his shotgun. Wrex, Shepherd and Jacob glowed blue, while Mordin and Kasumi took out their weapons. The other krogan had their weapons out also, this was bad…a little push was needed to turn this standoff into a bloodbath.

"ENOUGH!" Everyone stopped and looked back at Eve coming down the stair, giving every krogan in the room hard looks. "It has been centuries since the genophage and still you learn nothing!" She went to the center of the stage and looked back at her people. The krogan looked at her and settled down; they began to listen to her.

"How many more of us dying will it take before, you realize we are ruining ourselves?" She asked. "We were a proud and beautiful people once, but now look at us…look at our home!" Eve looked at Wreav; it was amazing how krogan such a Wreav turned small under her gaze. "Ask yourself this; is this what being a 'true' krogan means? Well, you can stay here and fester as krogan have always done, or you can fight together for our future and the future of our unborn children and win"

"I have no intention in forfeiting my future and my children's future to the reapers, and so I will fight, to my last breath, who will join me?" The krogan was silent for a while, until Wrex and Shepherd came up.

"We will" Kasumi and Jacob was next.

"We will also" Mordin was next.

"I also will too" Wrex came to meet Eve.

"Now hold you head high like true krogan!" Wrex said. "There's a reaper that needs killing!" The krogan erupted in loud roars and cheers.

"FOR TUCHANKA AND THE KROGAN RACE!"

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	34. Chapter 29b: Battle of Tuchanka pt2

**Chapter 29b: Battle for Tuchunka pt2**

_**The Hollows**_

"You forget your place, Wreav, I'm leader not you" Wreav and the other krogan growled.

"Is that so? Then maybe I'll just take it!" Wreav said taking out his shotgun. Wrex, Shepherd and Jacob glowed blue, while Mordin and Kasumi took out their weapons. The other krogan had their weapons out also, this was bad…a little push was needed to turn this standoff into a bloodbath.

"ENOUGH!" Everyone stopped and looked back at Eve coming down the stair, giving every krogan in the room hard looks. "It has been centuries since the genophage and still you learn nothing!" She went to the center of the stage and looked back at her people. The krogan looked at her and settled down; they began to listen to her.

"How many more of us dying will it take before, you realize we are ruining ourselves?" She asked. "We were a proud and beautiful people once, but now look at us…look at our home!" Eve looked at Wreav; it was amazing how krogan such a Wreav turned small under her gaze. "Ask yourself this; is this what being a 'true' krogan means? Well, you can stay here and fester as krogan have always done, or you can fight together for our future and the future of our unborn children and win"

"I have no intention in forfeiting my future and my children's future to the reapers, and so I will fight, to my last breath, who will join me?" The krogan was silent for a while, until Wrex and Shepherd came up.

"We will" Kasumi and Jacob was next.

"We will also" Mordin was next.

"I also will too" Wrex came to meet Eve.

"Now hold you head high like true krogan!" Wrex said. "There's a reaper that needs killing!" The krogan erupted in loud roars and cheers.

"FOR TUCHANKA AND THE KROGAN RACE!"

_**Tuchanka**_

The krogans head out in convoys towards the Shroud. It was a bumpy ride, but they reached smooth ground, they could see the Shroud in the horizon. Shepherd was up trying to contact the turian reinforcements that Victus promised, however there was some interference. The com open, though there were some static. "Krogan ground convoy, this is turian wing Artimec. Our flight vector to the Shroud is locked" the turian pilot said. "We're ten minutes out and counting"

"Roger that, Artimec. We're on our way, trying make up lost time. Shepherd out" he said. He closes the com and faced the group, he sighed. "So far so good…"

"Maybe not, Commander, Wreav isn't the only krogan that wants revenge for the genophage" Eve said. "Wrex will have to placate them somehow"

"Heh, I'm not worried, Wrex has proven himself a good leader, I have faith in him" he said. "Though you are right, so what's the plan Wrex?"

"Easy, I'll demand the Council return some of our old territories" Wrex said. "We'll need room to grow…recapture the glory of the ancients"

"'Glory of the ancients' led to the Krogan rebellions and the genophage" Mordin said. "Expansion plan…problematic" Mordin was right to be worried; as much as he trusted Wrex and Eve…there was still other krogan like Wreav. However the fact that Wrex was going to the Council directly instead of doing something rash was promising.

"What were the ancients like?" Shepherd asked.

"Tuchanka wasn't always the wasteland you see now, the ancients were a proud people" Eve said. "We had dreams, a future, but…"

"We interfered…." Mordin said.

Eve shook her head. "We had destroyed Tuchanka, technology changed us, made life too easy" she said. "So looked for new challenges and found them in each other. War was unavoidable"

"And we turned our planet into rubble; we'll need a better place to live" Wrex said.

"Helping to kill the reapers is worth a planet, I'd say" Shepherd said.

Wrex chuckled. "Or ten, you haven't seen how fast we can pop them out"

"Wrex! Must you be so lewd?!" Eve asked.

"It's only lewd if you're doing right…" Wrex said with a grin. "Besides, once the genophage is cured, we'll have some catching up to do"

Shepherd shook his head with a smirk. "Dog…"

Wrex smirked. "Like you should talk, I'm sure Tali appreciate your service…"

Shepherd coughed and blushed. "Ah, moving on…"

"Heh, thought so…" Eve then looked at Shepherd.

"Commander on the shuttle, you were going to say something…"Shepherd nodded and told the group about the Dalatrass' deal. Unknown to the Dalatrass, Shepherd had recorded his talk with her, he activated the recording. As they listened, Wrex looked disturbed and then looked at Mordin…his doubts started to spring up again, he knew Shepherd wouldn't sell him out but the salarian he wasn't sure. After all the Dalatrass was the leader of his people, he would do this out of obligation to Sur'Kesh.

"And there you have it, Linron's dirty deal" Shepherd said. "Unless we do something, the cure won't work"

"And she thought we wouldn't know better?" Wrex asked. He looked at Mordin, his eyes narrowed. "And what about you, Solus? Are willing to disobey your leader?"

"I've promised to help cure the genophage, I'll keep promise" Mordin said. "Know about work, would have fooled the tests, but can adjust"

Wrex snorted. "I'll hold you to that…"

"Thank you, you just spared our kind another genocide, Commander" Eve said. "You were right, Wrex"

"Heh, told you, we can rely on Shepherd" The convoy then came to a stop. Wrex frowned. "Why are we stopping?" Shepherd and his team came out of the convoy; other convoys were coming to stop. Other krogan came out of the tomkahs to check was going on, Shepherd looked out at the horizon at the Shroud….his stomach tied itself into knots as a sense of anxiety came over him.

"Wrex, you and Mordin stay with Eve, it's about to get ugly…"

"Got it" Shepherd went to speak with one of the scouts.

"What's the hold-up?" Shepherd asked.

The scout looks out on the road, it was full of debris and some of the road was structurally unsound. Only a few Tomkahs would be able to go through before the road collapsed. Shepherd opened his com to Artimec hoping to hold them back…without the ground forces it would be a slaughter. However the turians were in locked in their path and the reaper was aware of their presence. Shepherd looked up and saw the cruisers flying above them heading towards the Shroud and the reaper.

"That's not good" Kasumi said worried.

"We need to get in that fight, an airstrike alone will be useless" Jacob said. The turian cruisers started their fight against the reaper.

"Shit, like we need this…" Shepherd said. He looked at the scout. "I don't care if we have to build a new road, we're going"

"Wayne, over there!" Shepherd looked ahead and saw the reaper shoot down one of the cruisers, and the ship heading for team jumps out the way and the fighter hits a truck, causing it jump and flip in the air until it landed on another Tomkah causing an explosion that wiped out some of the krogan outside. Another explosion happened, and Shepherd dragged himself away from the blast as black smoke covered the air.

"Shepherd, what's happening?!" Wrex asked.

"Wrex, get Eve out of here! We'll catch up!" The trucks that were not destroyed drove went back on the road, leaving Shepherd and team. When the dust and smoke was cleared, the road was destroyed. Shepherd look behind them to see several destroyed Tomkahs, along with a destroyed turian wing and at least a dozen dead krogan. Jacob got up next and helped Kasumi up, Shepherd ran to them. "Everyone okay?"

"Nothing broken" Jacob said.

"Just a little sore, but okay" Kasumi said. Shepherd nodded and opened his com.

"Artimec, do you copy?" he asked.

"Commander, we have to abort, the reaper is tearing us apart!"

"Okay, brake off and regroup, we'll find another way"

"Understood" Shepherd then heard Kasumi yell his name, Shepherd went to them who was looking over a ledge. "What's up?"

"A tunnel over there, a way out don't you think?"

"Might as well, we're sitting ducks out here" Shepherd said. "Let's go" They jumped over the gap and headed into the tunnel. As they descended, it was getting harder and harder to see "Everyone, put on your visors" Now that they could see, it looked like they were in some kind of ruins, from the rubble and webbing everywhere it was very old. The walls were full of paintings, some of four-legged creatures that looked like a cross between an elephant and a dinosaur, others had images of Thresher Maws. Shepherd then opened his com."Wrex, come in"

"Shepherd, where the hell are you?" Wrex asked.

"Some kind of ruin. Everyone alright?" he asked.

"Just scratches, nothing the salarian can't patch up" he said. "Wreav made it out too"

"The turians had to call off the airstrike; we'll have to come up with a new plan"

"That, we can do, first we need to find you" Eve spoke up.

"Which ruin are you in?"

"Don't know, but the some of the walls have thresher maws painted on it"

"Commander, you are in the city of the ancients, no map exists" she said. "It is dedicated to Kalros"

"Who's that, a god or something?"

"Commander, we don't worship any gods, only our ancestors and the creatures on our planet" she said. "Kalros, is the mother of all thresher maw, some say the first one"

Kasumi blinked. "I'm sorry did she just say, mother of all thresher maw?" she asked.

Jacob sighed. "Looks like it…"

"You're a trailblazer, Shepherd, you can get through there"

"Yeah, no pressure, or nothing" Shepherd said dryly. "We'll find a place to meet." The team continued to wonder the ancient city, they felt tremors… at first they were small and infrequent but as they went in deeper they became larger and more frequent. They turned a corner and saw a large mural of a Thresher Maw, unlike the other murals it was darker more detailed. Something in the deep of the spectre's gut said that was Kalros…another tremor happened and this time it was causing large portion of the ruins fall almost crushing the team.

"That was close…" Jacob said.

"You're telling me…" Kasumi said. "What keep causing these tremors; it's too frequent to be natural"

"Good question, Wrex, you feeling any tremors?" Shepherd asked.

"No, why?"

"Cause, we're feeling it more and more"

"Then it must, be Kalros, it is said she lives in this region" Eve said.

"More of a reason to get out of there, Shepherd. Step on it!" Wrex said. Eventually after so many dead ends and close calls Shepherd and team, made it to the possible end of the ruins where they saw a dead Ravager. Behind the ravager was light, a way out.

"Ugh, gross…" Kasumi said.

"Possibly more near us, we should be careful" Jacob said.

"Wrex, we got more rachni here, keep an eye out" Shepherd said.

"I know we were just attacked by one" Wrex said. "All that matters is the Shroud, find us fast" Shepherd nodded and went up to the light, when they got there they were met with the most amazing sight, a part of Tuchanka untouched by the radiation. In the mixture of the of the brown of the ruins was the green of vegetation, something that was thought extinct from the krogan bombing their own world.

"Beautiful…" Kasumi said in awe.

"So this is what the krogan like before…amazing…" Jacob said. Shepherd opened his com.

"Wrex, we're out"

"Where?"

"Don't know, but it's green, very green…"Shepherd said.

"Well if you can see, sunlight, I'd say that's progress" he said.

"You're looking at hope…what's left of it on Tuchanka" Eve said. "This planet was full of beauty once, give it time and it can again" Wrex's voice then shook the team out of their awe and back to reality.

"Shepherd, that reaper is up to no good at the Shroud, get out of there and we'll pick you up"

"Understood"

"We'll still need to come up with a plan, though" Jacob said.

"We'll come to it, when we get there" Shepherd said. The team moved forward, looking for a way out of the ruins, they were still awed by the beauty of the ruins. It would be slow but in a few centuries Tuchanka could be a planet of green, a planet that could rival Alliance worlds like Eden Prime and Elysium. But in order for that to happen, the krogan had to be able to work for that future.

"To think Tuchanka was capable of this, maybe Eve is right" Kasumi said.

"I'm not pointing one way or the other, but seeing this does make you wonder what the krogan was like, centuries ago" Jacob said. Something then took shots at them and they had to run to cover.

"So much for the peace and quiet…" Shepherd said. He looked around cover and saw Cannibals, Ravagers, husks, and a Brute; this was going to be a tough battle. Shepherd and Kasumi threw some grenades to lessen the enemies. The husks ran towards the team, and the team got to their places.

"Charge!"


	35. Chapter 29c: Battle of Tuchanka pt3

**Chapter 29c: Battle for Tuchanka pt3**

The sounds of battle echoed throughout the ruins as the team continued their fight against the reaper troops. The Cannibals threw two grenades at Kasumi's location and the thief ran out of cover before it exploded. Kasumi launched her submission net at one of the Cannibals to trap it and stun its allies around it; Jacob charged at the trapped Cannibals and caused a burst of electricity and dark energy.

The victory was short-lived as the Brute charged Jacob, the biotic glowed blue and charged the brute at full force while Kasumi gave cover fire. Jacob and the Brute were pushing each other back trying to gain supremacy over the other, Jacob biotics flared brightly as he gave it more push….Kasumi threw her flashbang at the brute disorienting it and allowing Jacob to push it back into the ravine below. The biotic panted heavily, however could not rest as the ravager took aim at him. Shepherd took out his Blackstorm projector on the ravagers; the black hole sucked in the rachni husk and then exploded killing the rachni-husk. The team went ahead to the bridge; before they crossed they felt another tremor. "Another one" Kasumi said.

"Must be Kalros…" They then fell to the ground when they saw something big cut through the ruins. "Okay, scratch that, definitely Kalros" Jacob said. The team jumped the gap, and went to cover as more Cannibals came out to fight. Jacob pulled them out of cover, and Shepherd put them down with a warp field. Kasumi disappeared and shot them from behind, out of the corner of her eye was more Cannibals joined by another Brute.

"Another big one!" Kasumi said. The Brute charged Kasumi and the thief flips out the way…she ran to cover and trapped one of the Cannibals in a submission net. Shepherd threw a warp field at the Brute and Jacob charged the krogan-turian hybrid causing a biotic burst to knock it on the ground, Shepherd took out his heavy weapon and wiped out the husks. After the second wave, they go forward, around the U-turn, and up the ledges on the left.

Shepherd's comm opened. "Wrex, Eve was right about Kalros, she's on the move!"

"Yeah, we've got some ideas on that…What?"

"Not now, Wrex, The commander has enough to worry about" Eve said.

"What are you two talking about?" Shepherd asked.

"Some crazy idea we cooked up, we'll talk later" Wrex said. "Just focus on getting the hell out of there" The team got shot at again, a third wave of Cannibals, Husks, and Ravagers attacked.

"Damn, don't these bastards ever get tired?" Jacob asked.

"Less complaining and more shooting" Kasumi said. The husks ran towards them as the ravagers and Cannibals opened fired. Kasumi knocked down the husk with her flashbangs, Jacob went to the side to draw the ravager's fire allowing Shepherd use the last ammo of his Blackstorm at the ravagers and the explosion scattered the Husks and Cannibals. The ravager was left, however it was joined with more ravagers…Shepherd took out his Venom shotgun to weaken their armor, Jacob weaken them further using his incendiary-enhanced pistol. When two of them died, Jacob charged the last one to finish it. Once they are dead, the team head for a bridge with some krogan statues.

"Shepherd, we're coming under the bridge! Get down here and we can get to the Shroud"

"Got it, let's go" As they were getting ready to go across, they felt a shake, Shepherd looked around and saw a big brown figure behind the trucks. "Wrex, Kalros is behind you!"

"We know, break off, we're getting out here!" The tomkahs drove away as the Kalros went after the rovers. The team moved out-of-the-way as the giant maw cleaved through the bridge like a hot knife through butter. It was no wonder the ancient krogan worshiped it; they didn't think anyone could kill it.

"Kalros' territorial instinct confirmed!" Mordin said.

"She's not getting us!" Wrex said. "Shepherd go on ahead, we'll try and shake this thing!" The team jumped over to the next ledge.

"That maw is huge!" Kasumi said.

"And hungry, so watch your back" Shepherd said. They went up to a temple area, where there were more old krogan statues that littered the area. As the team approaches the small bridge, a wave of Cannibals and Husks attacked. "Jacob, you're up" Jacob nodded and charged blue knocking the Husks of the platform and to their death. Shepherd and Kasumi shot the Cannibals coming close the soldier. The team went back to cover, as Marauders came up and took their place…one of the turian husks was lifted off the ground as red light surrounded it. The marauders were strengthening each other, Shepherd overloaded the marauders' shields and Kasumi trapped one of them in a submission nets and Jacob finished them with a biotic charge. Shepherd's com opened.

"We lost Kalros, get down here and we'll pick you up" Wrex said. Shepherd and team made it down to the dunes to meet Wrex. "Wreav, watch for Kalros"

"Make it quick, Wrex!" Wreav said. "We're exposed!" The team went to Wrex's convoy until they felt the ground shift; it was Kalros coming back for round two.

"Move it, Hurry!" Shepherd ordered. The team made it to the convoy, and was able to escape, however Wrex's brother Wreav was not so lucky. Shepherd breathes a sigh of relief, and sits down. "Cutting it kind of close, Wrex"

"Time flies went you're having fun…"

"You're kidding, you consider that fun?" Kasumi asked tiredly.

"Sorry your brother didn't make it, you have my condolences" Jacob said.

Wrex snorted. "Eh, don't be, Wrev was pain in the ass anyway"

"Wrex…" Eve said.

"Fine…may he be with the ancestors…happy?" he said. "Now let's finish this, there's a reaper that needs killing" The convoy stopped and the team, Wrex, Mordin, and Eve came out, the Shroud was staring down at them, unfortunately so was the reaper. The reaper was patrolling it like a guard dog patrolling a junkyard….

"Uh, we do have a plan for this, right?" Kasumi asked nervously.

"We've been through some crazy shit before, but this takes it…" Jacob said. "Getting to that tower will be hell"

"We're curing the genophage no matter what, everything my people will be depends on it" Wrex said.

"Didn't you say something about a plan earlier?" Shepherd asked.

"Actually, it was her idea…" he said pointing to Eve.

"We summon Kalros to deal with the reaper"

"A giant worm against a genocidal spaceship?" Shepherd asked. "Would that even work?" Mordin spoke up.

"Already discussed strategy. Just need to distract the reaper long enough to draw it from the tower cure is synthesized and relief"

"Okay, but what makes you think she'll come?"

"This planet is as much her home as ours" Eve said.

Wrex chuckled. "If Tuchanka have a temper, Kalros is it. Nobody's ever faced her and lived"

"This seems crazy, suicidal, and fucked up…" Shepherd then smirked. "…sounds like fun" he said. "Like ripping Sovereign a new one, all over again, how do we summon her?"

"This tower was built in Kalros' glory. The salarians used it scare away intruders" Eve said.

"Appears to have worked" Mordin said.

"There are two maw hammers there, the largest in existence, strike it and she will come"

"Meanwhile, lab nearby, will finish the cure there"

Shepherd cracked his knuckles. "Hell of a story to tell, let's make sure we get out of here alive" he said walking away.

"Wait, Shepherd! No matter what happens, you have been a champion of the Krogan people and a friend of Clan Urdnot…" Wrex said. "…and a brother to me. To every krogan born after the name 'Shepherd' will mean hero" The two soldiers shook hands.

Shepherd nodded. "Let's show 'em how it's done"

"Wayne, behind us!" Kasumi said. Shepherd looked behind him, and three ravagers coming to meet them.

"Go! I've got this!" Wrex said glowing blue. The old Krogan rammed the first ravager and shot the second and blasted the third with a warp field. "I AM URDNOT WREX AND THIS IS MY PLANET!"

"See you on the other side" Shepherd said.

"Stay alive Shepherd, will have cure ready" Mordin said. The team made their way to the temple, only to be stopped by Cannibals.

"This is it people, I want these things dead, no exceptions" Jacob and Kasumi nodded. Kasumi used her submission net, to coral the Cannibals together, while Shepherd lifted them up with singularity field. Jacob then finished the job with his charge and nova, wiping them out and clearing the path. Shepherd comm opened.

"Shepherd, some luck! Original strain in storage, preparing cure"

"Make it quick, Mordin! They'll be all over us soon!"

"Understood!"

"Shepherd, to our left!" Jacob said. When they attempt to cross the bridge nearby, the Reaper blasts the bridge and Shepherd and team falls down below. "Everyone alright?"

"Not for long, look!" Kasumi said. As its most immediate threat, the Reaper targets the team and begins firing its laser. They take cover frequently, and move up between the shots.

"Shepherd, I raised the hammers, you have to activate both of them" Wrex said. "My advice: try to avoid the giant death laser"  
"Thank you Wrex, you're so helpful…" Shepherd sarcastically.

"I try…" Shepherd took a deep breath.

"Charge!" The team made a dead sprint for the hammers, in their way was multiple Brute, making the run to their objectives much harder. Shepherd activated his tech armor, and blasted them with his Venom Shotgun. The Brute charged the team, and they dodged the attack….the reaper continued to fire and one stray blast vaporized the brute into ash.

"Are we sure about this?" Kasumi asked. A brute tried to charge at her and she dodged. Jacob cover her and charged at brute knocking it back at the other brutes.

"Too late now, just keep moving!" Shepherd said. "Keep moving!" Once they reach a cover spot in the middle, the turian fighters thankfully appears again to draw the Reaper's fire. They bombed the brutes first before heading for the reaper.

"Commander, this is Artimec Wing!" the turian pilot said. "Do what you need to do, we'll draw their fire!"

"We owe them drinks after this…" Jacob said.

"You said it, let's go, and watch for brutes!" Shepherd and team rushed for the first hammer, dodging Brutes and the reaper's legs, and activated the first one. The path to the second one was much harder, as the reaper took down Artimec Wing, was now aiming and firing at them, the team bobbed and weaves between the Brutes, letting the reaper, kill its own troops. The team got to the second hammer and activated it.

"Go! Get to the shuttle; I'll take care of the cure!" Jacob and Kasumi hesitated for a minute. "Go, that's an order!" They nodded and left, while Shepherd makes his way to the Shroud.

Meanwhile the hammer activated, and Kalros was summoned, the reaper stood at attention, ready to fight this new threat. The giant maw approached the reaper slithering through the sand like a shark on the hunt, the reaper fired at the maw, but Kalros was too fast. The maw then lounged at reaper, tackling it, making the reaper's shot inaccurate, but almost hit Shepherd as he went to cover.

As the two colossuses battled it out, Shepherd was able to make it inside the facility. The reaper fired again, but Kalros receded back into the ground, making the reaper guess where the maw was. Kalros screeched, and attacked the reaper, this time behind the ancient ship and latched on. The reaper tried to fire, but its weapon was jammed and it fell to the ground. Kalros had done the impossible; she had killed the galaxy's most dangerous killer. She then coiled around the prized and then dragged it underground as it tried desperately to get free.

Shepherd was inside the Shroud looking for Mordin and Eve, although the giant maw killed the reaper, their battle had damaged the Shroud, so much, that the tower was now coming apart, Shepherd only had a limited time to find Mordin and Eve and get out before it collapses.

"I got to hurry!"

_**Looks like the reaper bit off more than it could chew. Review and Comment.**_


	36. Chapter 30: Sacrifice

**Chapter 30: Sacrifice**

_**The Normandy**_

Shepherd and Tali was in the War room, waiting for Garrus, who was talking to Primarch Victus on the situation of Palaven. Tali looked up at her boyfriend, she was worried about Shepherd, he looked so haggard, his face was worn and had a somber expression, not the roguish boyish energy she fell in love with on the original Normandy. She gripped his hand; Shepherd looked at Tali, and wore a small smile to tell her he was alright, even though she knew differently. Garrus came out of the War room to meet Shepherd and Tali, Wrex had come through the first batch of krogan troops were ready to mobilize to Menae. When they were done stabilizing the moon, they were heading to Palaven.

That was not all, Hackett was in talks with the battlemaster to help with some of the human colonies, Wrex was sending Aralakh Company and krogan battalions to help with evacuations. Not to mention he was sending krogan mechanics to work on the Crucible and Victus was sending some of the Hierarchy's best engineers as well. Eve was traveling throughout Tuchanka, to recruit more and more krogan clans to fight in the war; things were looking up for once in the war…however it did not seem that way with Shepherd.

"I'll start managing support right away, Boss" Garrus said. "Why don't you get some rest?"

Shepherd shook his head. "I'm fine, Garrus" he lied.

Tali gripped his arm. "Who do you think you're fooling, Wayne?" she asked softly. "We know Mordin's death was tough on you…"

"Besides, we need you at your best…we can't afford any mistakes…" Garrus said.

Shepherd sighed, he knew better than trying to hide his feelings from them, they knew him better than he knew himself sometimes. "Right…" Shepherd said. "Anything happens, let me know…" Garrus nodded and he walked away.

"Is Wayne going to be okay?" Tali asked worried.

Garrus sighed. "I don't know Tali…" he said. "Just give him room for now…" he said. Tali looked on at Shepherd's back sadly. Shepherd was back in room, where he saw his datapad blinking…he went to pick it up and frowned. It was a message from the Dalatrass…

_Commander, I am deeply disappointed by your actions on Tuchanka. As I thought I made clear, curing the genophage will have long-term consequences. Once the Reaper threat has passed, our combined forces will be so depleted that no race in the galaxy will be capable of stopping a resurgent krogan. Moreover, the krogan will undoubtedly seek revenge for the genophage, and the Salarian Union will be among their first targets. When that day comes, Commander, the blood of my people will be on your hands._

_I am ashamed to also learn that our own scientist sacrificed his life carrying out your orders._

_This is a dark day not only for my people, but all of galactic civilization._

_Dalatrass Linron, Salarian Union_

The message made Shepherd's blood boil, here he was…hours after losing a friend and all the Dalatrass could do was shove her self-righteous crap in his face. With a roar of frustration, he threw the datapad against the wall; breaking it in half…he sat down on the chair holding his head in his arms looking down on the floor. The truth of the matter, Shepherd was really angry at himself…Mordin was right there in front of him, he could have found another way to cure the Genophage without Mordin dying…but instead he just let him walk to his death…

_**Tuchanka-hours ago**_

Shepherd was inside the Shroud looking for Mordin and Eve, although the giant maw killed the reaper, their battle had damaged the Shroud, so much, that the tower was now coming apart, Shepherd only had a limited time to find Mordin and Eve and get before it collapses.

"I got to hurry!" The alarms loudly sounded, as the spectre made his way to the center…luckily the salarians built the tower easy to navigate in such an emergency. It also had multiple passageways also, and Shepherd was thankful as he had to face some dead-ends until he got to the lobby. He then saw a tannish figure in the distance, it was Mordin on a console and Shepherd made his way over to him.

"Mordin, is the cure ready?" Shepherd asked.

"Yes loaded for dispersal" Mordin said.

"And Eve?"

"Fine, sent her back to Urdnot Wrex" he said. "Her survival fortunate, will be able to stabilize new government with Wrex, both intelligent and moderate. Good match, see promising future for Krogan" A piece of the Shroud, then came plummeting to console near Shepherd.

"Shit, this place is coming down, fast, Mordin release the cure, and then we can get the hell out of here"

"Control room on top floor, must take elevator up" Mordin said.

Shepherd's eyes went wide. "You're going up there?!"

"Must counteract STG sabotage, ensure cure spreads properly" he said.

"That's suicide, Mordin, there must be another way!"

"Remote bypass not possible with countermeasure in place, no time to adjust cure for temperature variance" He then took a deep breath. "Not coming back, suggest you get cleared, explosion likely to be problematic, Tali would be worried" He begins to walk towards elevator.

"Mordin, no!" Shepherd said concerned.

"Please Shepherd, need to do this, my mistake, my cure, and my responsibility…"he said. "Please, ensure peace with krogan is possible"

Shepherd clenched his teeth and fists, it was the same as Virmire, once again he would have to choice a between an impossible choice. Shepherd closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "I…I will…" he said sadly. "I…I'm…so sorry…"

Mordin smiled. "I'm not, had to be me, someone else might have gotten it wrong…" he said. "I hope to see you in the next life"

Shepherd saluted. "Me too…" Mordin gave one back as the elevator went up to the control room. Mordin arrived to the top floor, the control room was full of debris and flames…there was not much time to waste, he ran to the console to disable to the countermeasure dodging explosions and falling debris. Meanwhile, the spectre ran out of the building and met up with Jacob and Kasumi who were running towards him.

"Wayne! You alright cuz?" Kasumi asked worried.

"Yeah…" Jacob then spoke up.

"Wait, where's Mordin?" Shepherd lowered his head and looked back at the Shroud. Jacob and Kasumi eyes widen and looked at the Shroud. "No way…" They then saw the most amazing thing, a silver cloud that came out of the Shroud and was spreading in the air, Mordin did it… the genophage was cured. The team then saw an explosion coming from the top floor, the team knew it, he was gone….the salarian gave his life to ensure this deal would happen. The other tomkahs caught up to them, and the krogans came out to look at the sight…amazingly enough there was no roar of victory, the krogans just look up in the sky in awe of the sight. It was like the centuries of hardship and turmoil was washed by the silver cloud…for once some of the krogan did not know what to do next, all they knew was fighting and now they had a second chance. Wrex and Eve came to them, equally in awe of the sight…Wrex soon snapped out of it and got serious.

"Shepherd, we need to talk…"

_**The Hollows**_

Wrex's tomkah traveled back to the Hollows to speak in private, on the way they saw a final explosion from the Shroud and the tower fell. That was it, the deed was done…even if Shepherd regretted his decision there was no going back. With the cure being spread throughout Tuchanka and no turian bomb as backup, the krogan was back…whether that was good thing or a bad thing was up in the air for now. Shepherd, Wrex and Eve walked around the hollows; the battlemaster was walking around the ruins and touched the rubble in the middle of the site. The look on Wrex's face was melancholy but also full of hope…he looked back at Shepherd. "Remember, when I told you I killed my father?"

Shepherd remembered, his father Jarrod carried a grudge against the Citadel races after the Rebellions and the devastating effects that the genophage had on his species. He disregarded the dwindling of krogan numbers, and joined with other tribal leaders to continue fighting. However, other krogan leaders, including Wrex, refused to follow Jarrod's call to war, preferring to focus on breeding instead. Jarrod became angry, and arranged for a Crush (a meeting on neutral ground) with Wrex and other tribal leaders at the Hollows, to discuss what should be done.

"Yeah, why?"

"It was right here centuries ago… my father betrayed me and tried to kill me" Wrex said. "His own son, just because I didn't see fighting in our future"

"On that day, when I killed him, I lost faith in my people, I welcomed extinction" he said. "That's what the genophage reduced us to, a hopeless shell of our former selves, animals that would betray their own…"

"You changed that today, Shepherd"

"Now we'll fight for our children, not against them" Eve said.

"Just remember, what we had to sacrifice…" Shepherd said.

"Yes I know, it's a pity that Mordin had to die…"

"The pyjack got it done, in the end" Wrex said. "It would be an honor to name my first-born after him" He then smirked. "Maybe a girl…" Shepherd smiled softly, he was sure if Mordin was here to hear that he would find that amusing. He looked up, where ever he was, the spectre was sure he was putting in a good word for them.

"Even though we can't thank him, we can thank you in person" Eve said.

"Tell Victus, I'll be deploying troops to Palaven immediately" Wrex said. "And when you're ready to kick the reapers off Earth, just call and we'll come, the krogan are back in business"

"Good bye, Commander and good luck" she said. "I will spread the hope you've given us, even now there are clans gathering in the Kelphic Valley"

"I'll speak to them and make sure this gift is not wasted" Eve said. "And know that Urdnot Bakara calls you friend" Shepherd nodded and went back to the Normandy.

_**Now**_

A knock interrupted Shepherd from his thoughts, he looked back. "Come in" Tali came in and sat in his lap, she wrapped her arms around his neck making him feel better. Shepherd gave her kiss on her forehead. They sat in the dark, just enjoying each other's company, until Tali spoke up.

"Wayne…." She said.

Shepherd looked at her. "I'm fine, Rookie…sorry for worrying you"

Tali took off her mask and kissed Shepherd on the lips. "Don't be, I know it was hard for you, it's hard for all of us, but you're not alone, you don't have to put this damn war on your shoulders." She said. "You can share your burden with me, no matter what …I'm with you till the end…"

Shepherd touched his head to hers. "I don't deserve you, but thank you, I promise when this shit is over, I'll make you the happiest woman alive, I swear it"

Tali kissed him. "I love you, sayang…"

"I love you too, jiwa" Tali made her move and slid her hands under his shirt and Shepherd made his way to back of the Quarian's suit, while kissing her neck. Before they could continue the PA opened and it was Traynor.

"Commander, I hope I'm not disturbing you"

Shepherd sighed. "What is it, Traynor?"

"The Councilor Valern, would like to talk to you in the comm room, he says it is urgent" she said.

"We'll pick this up as soon as I get back" Shepherd said stealing one last kiss from Tali. Tali smiled.

_**The Comm Room**_

Shepherd went to com room, he sighed expecting a tirade from the salarian councilor. However, to his surprised Valern instead congratulated Shepherd on his victory on Tuchanka. The praise of course was short-lived as he questioned his decision to cure the genophage…no doubt he was talking to the Dalatrass. Shepherd crossed his arms. "What's done is done, no going back now, besides I trust Wrex to keep the Krogan in line" Shepherd said.

Valern snorted. "I hope you are right, for all our sakes…"

"So what do you want?"

"I have concerns about humanity's representative, Councilor Udina" he said. "My agents have discovered large sums of money in his account, where he got it from and what he plans to do with it, I do not know"

Shepherd crossed his arms. "You're kidding? We're in the middle of a war and you want me to sniff around Udina's dirty laundry?"

Valern blinked. "Why would…I am well aware of our war with the reapers, but if one of the councilors is dirty, then that doesn't help you now does it?"

"I suppose, but if I'm going to help, what do I get in return?"

"And why would I give you anything? You work for us" Valern said dryly.

"My people have a saying, you scratch my back and I scratch yours, you want me then you get me what I need" He said.

"And what's that?"

"Full salarian support for the war, this is too important to be stopped by a spoiled dalatrass bitch" Shepherd said. "You know I'm right…"

Valern sighed. "Very well, come to the Citadel, we will have much discussed in private" he said. Valern out"

"Joker, get us the Citadel" Shepherd said.

"Aye-aye, Commander" Shepherd went back to his cabin to be with Tali.

_**Review and Comment.**_

_**Sayang: Keelish for love or lover**_

_**Jiwa: Keelish for my heart and hope**_


	37. Chapter 31a: The Cerberus Coup pt1

**Chapter 31a: The Cerberus Coup pt1**

_**Javik's room**_

Javik spent the last couple of hours reviewing and watching footage of the reaper's defeat on Tuchanka in his room. EDI offered her help, as she was also reviewing the footage to send to the Alliance and its allies…however the prothean refused as he did not trust the AI. He found it disturbing that Shepherd allowed an unshackled AI to roam freely around the ship; he was even more disturbed that the pilot harbored romantic feelings for it. Artificial Intelligence were the bane of organic life, he knew it from fighting the reapers and from his people's history.

Early in their development, the Protheans encountered a hostile machine intelligence which threatened to overwhelm them. To defeat the machines, the Protheans decided to unite all of the galaxy's sentient organic life under their empire. The other organic races were free to resist, but those that tried were crushed, and none ever managed to best the Protheans' might. In time, each of the subjugated races assimilated into Prothean culture and came to think of themselves as Prothean. United under a single cause, the Prothean Empire successfully held off the enemy machines in a conflict known as the "Metacon War".

"Enter asari…" Javik said. Liara came into his room, Javik scoffed…no doubt she wanted more information about his people. Her curiosity reminded him of the Alka, a race from his cycle…they valued knowledge…in fact it was the basis for their culture, the more one knew the better off they would be in their society. The Protheans saw value in that, and they were absorbed into the empire as keeper of prothean history and part of their intelligence division of the military. "You are here for more answers, yes?"

Liara shook her head. "No, just wanted to check on you…" she said. She came up to his side. "We're approaching the Citadel soon…why don't you get some air? It can't be too interesting being stuck on the ship"

Javik scoffed. "Your concern is not needed asari, my only purpose is to defeat the reapers" he said. "Anything else is nothing to me" Javik felt a change in her physiology, the asari felt sorry for him…again this cycle continued to confound him, in his cycle the feelings of one individual did not matter, only the good of the empire matter. The compassion, the races of this cycle value would be their downfall…to defeat the reapers they would have steel themselves.

"Of course…" Liara said sadly. She went to the door, knowing he want to be left alone. Before she walked through the door she looks back. "I hope you know Javik, you can talk to us anytime…this war is likely to be long and terrible; you're not alone…"

"You will learn, asari that comradery ultimately does not matter in this war" Javik said bitterly. "You will see all of them as potential threats…."

"Is that how you see us?" Liara asked softly. Javik did not answer. "I see…" Liara walked out of the room and Javik continued looking at the footage of Tuchanka.

_**Shepherd's Cabin**_

"Commander, we are getting close to the Citadel" EDI said. "Commander, please report to the bridge" Tali stirred awake, hearing the AI's message for Shepherd to get out of bed. She looked to her right and saw her naked lover asleep peacefully, it was tough for her to wake him up, due to this being the best sleep he's gotten since the war started. But they had a job to do, and went wake him up. Tali kissed his bare chest, and Shepherd stirred in his sleep.

"Wayne, it's time to get up, love" Tali said softly.

Shepherd groaned. "Yeah…Yeah…" he said annoyed. Shepherd kissed Tali's lips and got out of bed for a shower, while he was in the shower Tali checked her omni-tool once again to contact the Migrant Fleet. She had been checking Mass relay traffic reports…however most of the reports were about refugees or were no longer being track due to reaper forces. Shepherd came out of the shower and went to get dress, he saw Tali on her omni-tool. His eyes went wide, in his self-pity about Mordin's death he had totally forgot what Hackett told him.

"Shit, I almost forgot Hackett was finally able to get into contact with the Migrant Fleet" Shepherd said. "We'll go and see them after the meeting" Tali's eyes lit up and she pounced her boyfriend and gave him a deep kiss.

"Thank you, Wayne, Thank you, I was so worried about them" she said.

"Anything for my girl" Shepherd said with a smile.

_**Cockpit**_

"Son of a…" Joker complained. The Normandy approaches the Citadel but was not cleared for landing. Joker tries to contact someone inside the Citadel but there was no answer, which really frustrated him to no end. "This ridiculous, are they on a coffee break or something…?"

"It could be your charming personality, Jeff…" EDI said dryly.

"Way to support your boyfriend in his time of need…" Joker whined.

"I try…"

Joker shook his head and went to the comm. "Alliance control, this SSV Normandy, are we cleared to descend?" he asked irritated. "Alliance control, this is Normandy on Council business"

The door opened and Shepherd came in. "What's the holdup Joker? We should have been there minutes ago and Tali's complaining you wasting the Normandy's fuel"

"Don't look at me; I've tried to get through for a while now"

"System malfunctions then?" Shepherd asked.

"Even if that was the case they would have back-ups in place, and I am not sensing any malfunctions in the Citadel's system" EDI said.

Shepherd frowned. "Weird, check emergency channels" Joker nodded and pressed a button.

"Oh shit…" Joker said. "Message from Thane, Commander, it's bad, like shitstorm bad"

"Open it" Joker nodded and opened the file.

"Shepherd, we have a problem here, Cerberus troops are everywhere, they're in control of the docks" Thane said.

Shepherd and Joker looked at each other, the Citadel was one of the most secured places in the galaxy and the Council had made great strides to make sure nothing like the Battle of the Citadel every happen again. "Cerberus? Are you and Kolyat safe?"

"We're okay, I'm helping the refugees get to safety, Kolyat went ahead, said he was going to protect the council" he said. "After I'm finish here, I will go to C-sec headquarters"

"Why C-sec?" Shepherd asked.

"It's been compromised, as long as Cerberus is there they have the station"

Shepherd frowned; Thane was in the late stages of Kelphal's Syndrome he was not in top form to take on Cerberus directly. However Thane was right, as long as Cerberus was on the station they were a problem. The spectre sighed. "Just be careful, Thane, for your sake and Kolyat's"

"Understood" The com closed, and Shepherd walked away to get to armory.

"Joker get us as close to C-sec HQ as you can, we'll go by shuttle" he said.

"On it Commander" Joker said.

_The Citadel is an ancient deep-space station, presumably constructed by the Protheans. Since the Prothean extinction, numerous species have come to call the Citadel home. It serves as the political, cultural, and financial capital of the galactic community. To represent their interests, most species maintain embassies on the Presidium, the Citadel's inner ring._

_The Citadel Tower, in the center of the Presidium, holds the Citadel Council chambers. Council affairs often have far-reaching effects on the rest of the galactic community. Five arms, known as_

_wards, extend from the Presidium. Their inner surfaces have been built into cities, populated by millions of inhabitants from across the galaxy._

_The Citadel is virtually indestructible. If attacked, the station can close its arms to form a solid, impregnable shell. For as long as the station has existed, an enigmatic race called the keepers has maintained it.-Codex_

The Citadel was in chaos as the Kodiak flew through the presidium. C-sec was holding their own trying to force Cerberus back; however they were simply unprepared for the heavy arsenal the organization brought with them. About half way to their destination, they saw a turian C-sec officer and an Alliance officer taking cover behind a car as they faced off against Cerberus as they entered the plaza. The two groups traded shots until an Atlas came up on Cerberus' side, its right side started to spin and it smashed a car in front of them into the two men. They ran away only to be cut down by Cerberus guns. "My god, it's a warzone" Miranda said.

"But why is Cerberus here?" Liara asked.

"Doesn't matter, we need to get these bastards off the station" Shepherd said. The shuttle turned the corner into a corridor that lead to the C-sec customs. The hatch opened C-sec was currently in the middle of battle with Cerberus and was losing men quickly, the shuttle landed and as soon as the team got out, a Cerberus trooper slammed into the shuttle hard. A rough feminine voice yelled out.

"Bring it on, you fuckers!" Shepherd looked to his side and saw none other than Jack fighting off Cerberus, while protecting a wounded Bailey.

"Jack?!"

Jack summoned a biotic tendril from her glove, and swung it at the troopers…knocking them off ledges. More troopers came at her and she took cover. "Sup, Boy Scout, I would to shoot the shit with you but let's finish these bastards off first" Shepherd and team nodded and went to cover.

Liara used her singularity field to lift the troopers up and Shepherd blew them away with a warp field. Some troopers came near Miranda and fired at her she summoned her tech shield and blast them with her flamer. Jack threw shock waves at the troopers blowing them back, and then she took out her knife and charged it biotic energy and swung causing a shockwave. Shepherd took out his Blackstorm projector to suck in the Centurions and Engineer and exploded making them fall off ledges. With the help of Jack and Shepherd and his team, C-sec was able to push back Cerberus back, at least for now.

Shepherd went help Jack with Bailey, he was shot in the sides…not fatal but he was out of commission for a while. They went into the Customs office and sat him at a desk; the officers that weren't injured took their positions to look out for more troopers. "Shepherd, thanks for the save, I thought we were done for"

"No problem, you okay? You look like shit"

"Nothing medi-gel can't fix up" Shepherd looked at Jack, last he saw her she was in the middle of training her students in case the Alliance decided to deploy them.

"Jack, what are you doing here?"

Jack crossed her arms. "What do you think? Kicking these fucks of the Citadel"

"Where's Kelly and the kids?"

"Helping out with the refugees" she said. "Shit it's been crazy; I had a close call with Cerberus before coming here..." She later explained that a Salarian spectre in black armor helped her out when she was outgunned by Cerberus; Shepherd recognized who she was talking about...Jondum Bau the spectre he and Kasumi worked with on the hanar diplomat incident. Jack said after he helped, he went down to the wards to help C-sec while she went to help Bailey.

The ex-con shook her head. "Those fuckers are killing everyone in sight, mostly aliens" Jack said. "They've been capturing humans, for what I don't know…"

After being patched up, Bailey looked at Shepherd. "So what's the plan Shepherd? We're flying blind as long as Cerberus has the network" Bailey said.

"We take it back; Thane is heading to the headquarters now" Shepherd said. "After that, we help Kolyat and the Council"

"Thanks Shepherd, I was pretty worried about the kid, even though I know he can get the job done" he said. "Anyway, I'll open up the network, try to wiggle some control from Cerberus" He activated the console to get to work.

"Gecko is? He's pretty badass for being sick" Jack said. "So what are we waiting for? The sooner we kick Cerberus out of here, the sooner my kids will be safe"

Miranda raised a brow." You are coming with us?"

Jack crossed her arms. "Problem, Cheerleader?"

"No not at all, I just hope you can keep up with me"

Jack glowed blue. "That a challenge?"

Miranda glowed blue and smirked. "Afraid?"

"To a cheerleader bitch like you, hell no"

Bailey looked at them and raised a brow as he typed on the laptop. "Are they always like that?"

Shepherd shook his head. "You have no idea…" he said. "What do you got?"

"A warning from Valern, he was to meet the executor" he said. "Be on guard- the likelihood of betrayal from within is high… Not much else"

"I didn't know that, I came here for a meeting with Valern myself"

"Do you think this was what Valern wanted to talk about?" Liara asked. "He did mentioned Udina"

Miranda's glow disappeared and she looked at them. "I wouldn't doubt it, Cerberus has friends in high places, and Udina would be no exception" Miranda said.

"We can speculate all we want, but until we find Valern, it's all moot" Shepherd said. He looked at Bailey. "Where am I headed?"

"Chances are he'll be in the executor's office, it's fairly safe" Bailey said. He worked on his omni-tool. "We'll keep in radio contact"

Shepherd nodded. "Thane, I'm sure you heard all that"

"Yes, I'm nearing the building, but running is difficult. I'll try to get to you" he said. They go through the two doors behind Bailey, and see two Assault Troopers across the hall with their backs to them.

"Pre-emptive strike…" Miranda said.

"I got this" Jack said. She glowed blue and disappeared right on top of them and summoned some long biotic tendrils and slammed them against the two troopers, causing a small crater in the ground. "Looks like we got their attention"

"Looks like it, Showtime people" Shepherd said. Liara and Miranda nodded. Miranda used her snap freeze at a group of engineers and Jack shattered them with a biotic slash. Shepherd threw some lift grenades and suspended them in the air, while Liara blew them away with her warp field. More and more troopers landed and attacked the team.

"Good I was looking forward to kicking more Cerberus asses" Jack said with a smirk. "Hey Cheerleader, bet I kill more than you"

"You're on!" Shepherd and Liara shook their heads as the followed them into battle.

_**A more in-depth look at Kasumi, Miranda, Jacob, and Jack's Powers**_

_**Kasumi: Shadow strike, Flash bangs, Submission net, and Overload**_

_**Miranda: Warp, Slam, Flamer, Snap Freeze**_

_**Jacob: Biotic charge, Nova, Pull field, and incendiary ammo**_

_**Jack: Biotic smash, Biotic slash, Annihilation Field and Shock wave**_

_**Review and Comment**_


	38. Chapter 31b: The Cerberus Coup pt2

**Chapter 31b: The Cerberus Coup pt2**

The C-sec lobby was in chaos as more Cerberus troopers flew in from the sky, and Jack blew them back with a shockwave. Centurions came in with smoke grenades to block the team's vision as more troopers landed in the lobby, when they landed they opened fired and threw grenades to keep them off-balance. Liara froze the Centurions in a stasis bubble while Shepherd stunned their squad with an Overload chain. Miranda came in close and turned them into popsicles and then turned on the heat. More shots rang out and to their right were three guardians approaching while two engineers set up their turrets.

"Shepherd guardians, to our right!" Liara said. The turrets fired on the team and they quickly changed cover. Shepherd and Liara handled the turrets and the Engineers while Miranda and Jack handled the guardians. Jack glowed and a dark blue wispy field enveloped her, she sent out a shockwave sending them flying was a violent biotic burst, another came from the side catching her off-guard until he was frozen and then shattered. Jack looked at her savior, it was Miranda with a smug smirk on her face, Jack scoffed and the two continued to fight off the guardians. Meanwhile Shepherd and Liara were being pinned down by the turrets, as more troopers arrived behind the engineers. Shepherd stripped the turrets of its shields, and Liara pelted the machines with warp fields until they were destroyed.

The Engineers rushed to set up another turret until the spectre took control of the troopers causing a shootout between allies. Miranda and Jack rejoined them when they were done with the guardians, Jack shift to the side of the troopers and struck with her biotic tendrils while Miranda, Shepherd and Liara gunned them down. After the battle was done, and the team was able to rest easy, Shepherd opened his com.

"Bailey, Troops were in the lobby, they were dug in" he said.

"Yeah, I know, they're all over the Citadel" Miranda spoke up.

"Shepherd look, C-sec corpse" she said. Shepherd went to her.

"Yeah, I see and…?"

Miranda turned the corpse's head and saw several bullets holes…the person didn't know until it was too late. "They're in the back of the head…" she said.

"Just like Mars…." Liara said.

Shepherd frowned. "Sleeper agents….shit" he then raises his com. "Bailey, its Shepherd, watch your back; there may be more sleeper agents among you"

"Will do Shepherd" The team went to the next area, from the looks of it they were in the locker room…the room was wet from the sprinkler systems being activated from the fires. Far into the room were Cerberus troops, they didn't notice them…they were too busy standing which made it perfect for a preemptive strike. Shepherd threw out a grenade first and took out the Centurion in the center after that they had their attention. Miranda was the first ones in, using her tech shield to cover Jack and Liara. Liara immobilized the troopers with a combination of Singularity and Stasis, allowing Jack to shift in finish them off with her shotgun. To the side was an Engineer setting up his turret, Shepherd froze him in a stasis field and blasted him with a warp field. After the battle, Jack saw more C-sec corpses, this time they were naked, they were just taking a shower before Cerberus killed them.

"Fuck…didn't even give them the chance to defend themselves…" she said in disgust. "Bastards" They then hear something farther in.

"Stay low…" Shepherd said. It was a Cerberus engineer talking on the com, in front of him was a control box.

"Elevator secured, starting scramble"

"Shepherd, if we lose the elevators, we lose the station" Liara said. Shepherd gave the nod to Jack and the biotic phased in and silted the engineer's throat with her knife.

"Miranda, get the elevator running, the rest of you are with me" Liara and Jack nodded and as Miranda worked on the elevator, they watched for ambushes. "Done"

"Reset complete, access enabled" The team got into the elevator and Shepherd's com opened.

"Did you find any survivors?" Bailey asked.

"None yet" Shepherd said.

Bailey sighed. "Damn it, keep looking" The team went out of the elevator and was met with a gruesome sight, it was a massacre. The room was littered with smoke and flames, walls were full of bullet holes. To their side was a dark grey remnant of a device, a bomb…Cerberus didn't bother to fight them directly, they just blew them up to get them out-of-the-way.

"Such senseless slaughter…" Liara said softly.

"Poor bastards never stood a chance…" EDI came up over the com; Bailey was feeding the Normandy a camera view of the whole mission. The AI was recording the dead, saying it would be useful for propaganda purposes or memorial purposes…Shepherd struck it down, explaining that it was too soon. They went into the next area, where there were two troopers standing guard. Shepherd and Jack quickly killed them and they went on their way. Turning the corner, they were in an office/ mess room area. The team was nervous, that couldn't be all from Cerberus however from the looks of the damage they had sinking feeling that they were too late. "We must close"

"Yes you are; the Executor's office is up the stairs" Bailey said.

"Hopefully we're not too late" Liara said. The team came close the office, the sound of shattered glass and explosions got their attention. Above them the troopers open fired, making them scatter to cover.

"Watch your ass!" Jack said. She glowed blue/black and got out her knife and charged the blade with biotic energy. Miranda used her flamer to burn the troopers and Liara lifted them of the ground with her singularity field. Shepherd activated his tech armor and got his shotgun and blasted the troopers and then detonated Liara's field with a warp filed. Jack swiped at the centurions with her biotic slash and then wiped them out with her smash. After the battle was done, they went upstairs and took cover, ready for anything.

"Open it" Shepherd said. Miranda nodded and opened the door and the team went in with the office with their guns out. In the office, they saw a human slumped over the desk...Liara went to examine his throat slit. Jack checked the salarians, it was the same deal no bullet wounds and a cut from a blade. Cerberus made sure there were no mistakes. "Bailey we're too late, the Executor and his bodyguards are dead"

"Shit…all right, keep searching" Bailey said. "The fact we haven't seen the councilor's body, means there's a chance that he's still alive"

"Right" he said. Shepherd then he saw Miranda at the window overlooking the office below, her eyes narrowed like she was focused on something. "What's wrong?"

"I think we found the councilor…" Shepherd met her at the window and saw nothing until he saw something shimmering in the light. A figure rose and decloaked, it was Councilor Valern. Shepherd raised his com.

"We found him, he's unharmed"

Bailey sighed. "Well, that's one problem dealt with" he said. "Get him to safety" Shepherd went give his team the signal until Jack then spoke up.

"Yo, Boy Scout! Up there!" Shepherd looked up and saw a woman in black light armor on top of the ledge jump down in front of the Councilor. Valern's eyes went wide as he backed up, the woman walking towards him menacingly…she pulled out her sword.

"Shit, let's move!" Shepherd and Jack jumped out of the building, with Miranda and Liara and catching up to them. The woman jumped and flipped behind the councilor, pointing at the councilor's neck. Shepherd pulled out his pistol while Jack glowed. "Don't even think about it"

The woman pressed the point of her blade closer to the salarian's neck. "Don't move or the Salarian dies!" she said coldly.

"Shepherd, Udina's going to kill us all" Valern said.

"What do you mean?" Shepherd asked.

"He's staging a coup, the other councilors are being lured into a trap" he said. Miranda and Liara caught up to them.

"We'll stop him, as for you, I would suggest you give up lady, it's four us against one of you" Shepherd said.

The woman gave a cold laugh. "You wouldn't dare…I know how important the salarian is to your plans" she said. "You won't jeopardize that" Shepherd hesitated for a minute, she was right if Valern dies then he could get help from the Salarian Union. They then heard a gun clicking and it was Thane with a gun behind her head. The woman then slapped the away and gave an elbow to the drell, in which he blocked and countered her with a punch of his own, pushing the woman back.

"Secure the Councilor!" Shepherd said. The team got to Valern and surrounded him, while Thane was dealing with woman. The woman grabbed Thane and punch him in the chest repeatedly until the drell got himself loose and retaliated with a backhanded fist in which she guarded against. The woman was indeed skilled, but she had a lot to learn as when she flipped him, he was able to recover instantly and gave kick to her chest pushing her back to the wall. The woman was seething with anger and charged at dell with sword in hand, Thane charged his biotics was able to break her sword and gave a swift but powerful kick to face shattering the side of her helmet. She fell to the floor, and she was knocked out, not before Miranda gave a startled gasp at seeing the woman's face. She recognized her.

"No…" she gasped. Thane walked up to the woman about to finish her until, Miranda broke formation and went in front of the woman, shielding her from Thane. The team looked at her surpised. "Stop, don't come any closer!"

"Cheerleader what the hell?!"

"Miss Lawson, please stand aside, she is a threat" Thane said calmly. Miranda shook her head defiantly and shielded the unconscious woman.

"I'm sorry but I can't let you kill her" Miranda said.

"Dammit, Cheerleader, she's Cerberus, she doesn't deserve to live!" Jack said. Miranda glared at Jack.

"She's not Cerberus, she's my sister!" Miranda yelled.

The team was stunned at the revelation, Miranda took that time to remove the rest of her shattered helmet, to revel that she was indeed Miranda's sister, Orianna. However she looked different from the young woman on Illum, she was pale, and face was scarred, not from the fight, but from the months of being in Cerberus's custody. Her hair was much shorter with the sides and back of her head shaved, with a long scar running along the back of her head. Tears ran down Miranda's face.

"Ori, what have they done to you…?" A voice spoke up

"We made her better than the miserable woman she was before" the voice said.

The team then heard a pained grunt, and to their horror, it was Thane being run through by a sword. At the hilt of the sword was a man in the same black uniform as Orianna, he had long hair tied in a ponytail. His face was obscured with mask, but from what little they could he was of Asian descent. The man pushed the drell off his sword and Thane fell with a heavy thud lying in a puddle of his own blood.

The man scoffed as he wiped his sword of Thane's blood. "Disappointing, I expected the former teammate of the great Commander Shepherd to be more attentive"

"Thane!" Shepherd said. "Bastard!" The man gave a cruel smirk and looked back at the fallen Orianna.

"Orianna, how long are going to feign weakness? I thought I taught you better than that" he said. Orianna opened her eyes; before Miranda could react she gave her sister a swift, hard punch to the face. She got up and joined the man's side.

"Miranda!" With the formation broken, the man took out his gun and aimed at Valern in the head with two shots the Salarian councilor fell with a dull thud. "Damn you!" Shepherd charged at the man and Orianna, not before the man threw down a flash grenade, blinding the team. When their vision returned, the man and Orianna were gone.

"Fuck!" Shepherd said. He heard the weak groans from the drell, and ran to him. "Thane, come on man, stay with me!"

"She…pherd…you….must….stop…him…" Thane said weakly. He coughed up his blood, and wheezed he wouldn't have long. "He's…going after….council….Kolyat…" His eyes went dark and he went limp, he was dead, Thane was dead, Shepherd had lost yet another friend.

"No…not again…" Shepherd said softly. His head went down as he clenched his fist tightly. "Not another one…" Liara walked up to him and put a head on his shoulder.

"Shepherd, we have to go, we have to save the remaining council" Liara said softly.

"R…right…We have a job to do…" Shepherd said shakily. He then raised his com. "Bailey, it's Shepherd…"

"Shepherd, what hell happened? One minute I was watching you and the next minute static…"

"Valern's dead…"

"Shit, you kidding me?"

"Yeah…where is the rest of the council?" Shepherd asked.

"At the emergency docks, Kolyat and some of my men are with him" he said. Shepherd flinched when he mentioned Kolyat, and looked at Thane's body. He was dead, Kolyat's father was dead, all because they were caught off guard, and how was he going to explain to Kolyat that Thane's death was his fault, that he failed him.

Shepherd took a deep breath. "Right" he said. "Bailey, we also have…another casualty…"

"Who?"

"Thane…Kolyat's father…"

Bailey was quiet for a while. "I see…you want me to break the news….?"

"No, I'll do it…It's my responsibility as his friend…"

_**Things take a turn for the worst….Find out next time.**_

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	39. Chapter 31c: The Cerberus Coup pt3

**Chapter 31c: The Cerberus Coup pt3**

_**Hours ago…**_

_She felt it, felt it all, but there was nothing she could do, all she could do was look on from the prison that used to be her mind. Pain…despair…hatred…fear, these were all the things that she felt, all the things her mind screamed, cried, but could not express. From her body being tortured, to her body being defiled, it was a hell she could not escape. It was nighttime, she was bare, lying next to a man she hated, she wanted to kill him with all her being, but she couldn't do anything, due to the experiments they did to her, she felt helpless, there was no hope, her sister wouldn't come, she was forever their puppet, their murderer, their slave. The comm beeped, and the hated man got up and got dress and opened his com._

"_Lang here"_

"_Enjoyed your fun…?" The other man said over the comm. Lang just gave a cruel smirk. "I see…our agents have given us the green light, you are to meet the troops in the Widow Nebula"_

"_Finally…I'll be there…" Lang said. The other man's image faded and Lang looked back at her. "Get up; it's time to get to work…" _

_Hours later, Lang and his men arrived on the Citadel; the area they were in was full of dead bodies from the initial assault, the only sound that could be heard were the sound of screams and gunfire. The sight and sounds turned Orianna's stomach; at the mere thought that she was going to be a part of this horror, but she felt nothing…the chip wouldn't allow her. However Lang just gave a sickening smirk at the carnage, he enjoyed the sight. _

_He whistled. "Our guys did a number on the station" They heard a moaning sound, Lang turned his head to see a asari trying to desperately crawl away but her battered legs didn't care her too far. Lang scoffed. "They missed one…damn dolls can't do anything right" Lang took out his sword and went to the wounded asari, the woman's eyes went wide with fear as tears flowed from her eyes._

"_Please…please, don't kill me, I'm with child" the asari pleaded._

"_Isn't that precious…." Lang said as he drove his sword into her stomach. The asari screamed in agony writhing violently until she stopped and laid limp on the floor. He then stomped on the head of the asari corpse and smirked. "You aliens so arrogant in your perceived superiority, but once you're dead you're like any other dead weight…" He kicked the corpse in the stomach and faced his men. His com beeped. "Lang here…"_

"_We've received a message from Udina, they're heading for the emergency shuttle" one of them said. "However Valern was not among them…and our men haven't been able to find him"_

_Lang scoffed. "Leave it to a toad to make my job harder" he said. "Continue your attack…" He closed the com and looked at Orianna. "I have a job for you….find and eliminate Valern, I expect no screw-ups…" _

"_Yes sir…." _

_**Now-Kai Lang and Orianna**_

Kai Lang and Orianna was in the maintenance shaft, the Cerberus trooper opened his com. The Illusive Man appeared in the same chair, sipping wine. Usually a person a like the Cerberus leader ticked him off, but he let it go since he was a man of action unlike the useless higher-ups of the Alliance. Not to mention Cerberus had a lot less regulation, which meant he could make his own fun "Kai Lang how's progress on the siege?" The Illusive Man said.

"Good for the most part, although we hit a snag" Lang said.

Illusive Man frowned. "Valern lives?"

Kai Lang smirked. "No the toad is dead, I made sure of it" He then got serious. "It's Shepherd, he's on the Citadel, and he knows about Udina"

Illusive man smoked a drab. "I'm not surprised, despite the council's antagonistic relationship with Shepherd, they still respect him" he said. Kai Lang scoffed, the way the Illusive Man talked it sounded like he still had some respect for the spectre. He read the spectre's records, and he wasn't impressed…he was just a screw up that got lucky. Not to mention he was soft, willing to throw away his life for aliens, Shepherd even had quarian girlfriend…it made him sick to his stomach that a fellow human was willing to lie with such filth. "Stall Shepherd, give Udina time to uphold his half of the bargain"

Kai Lang frowned. "Stall? Shepherd's a threat we should kill him"

"No amount of soldiers will stop him…stall him until it's time" Kai Lang nodded and closed his com. Orianna came up to him.

"Your orders sir?" Lang then whipped around and smacked Orianna hard enough to draw blood, and the woman fell to the ground hard. Orianna shook in fear when she saw the look in Lang's eyes, full of murderous rage and disgust. "S-sir?"

Kai Lang then grabbed her by the neck, choking her. "You stupid little cunt, I gave you the best training I had to offer, I saved you from being dear old daddy's little lab rat" he said in a cold rage. "And you repay me by losing to a fucking lizard on his death bed?! If it wasn't for the fact that you're a useful toy, I would end your worthless existence for that embarrassment" Orianna was then thrown back on the ground hard, she could breathe. "Get yourself cleaned up and get to your post"

"Y-yes sir"

_**The Citadel**_

The team took a shuttle to the emergency dock that Bailey said the council was at. The visit to see the councilor was a huge clusterfuck of a mess. They had found Cerberus had attacked the Citadel, Orianna was a member of Cerberus and both Councilor Velern and Thane were dead. The drive was quiet and awkward, even though they had to save the other councilors and confront Udina; they were tired, physically, mentally, and emotionally. This war threaten to break them, especially Shepherd…they had only lost Mordin a day ago and now this…he wondered how much more he could take. Shepherd opened his com, maybe focusing on the mission would ease his troubled mind.

"Bailey talk to me" Shepherd said.

"I got a fix on their location, sending it to your car" Bailey said. The car's computer lit up, Liara looked at the data.

"On the Presidium, not far from here if we keep going this route" As they were flying, the assassin that killed Thane jumped on to the team's car. Shepherd tried to shake him off the car but the man had mag boots on. The man gave a sadistic smirk and stood up and took out his sword.

"Liara, take the controls" Liara nodded and took the controls while Shepherd took out his gun and fired at the man, but the window weaken the shots and the assassin went to the back of the car. Shepherd kicked the door open and fired his pistol. The assassin raised his arm and created a barrier, to block his shots.

The man smirked smugly, making Shepherd seethe with hatred for him. "Fall" He then stabbed the engine making Liara lose control of the car. A red car came to the side of the team's car and opened the door revealing a phantom driving it. The assassin then jumped to the other car, as Shepherd got back to try to regain control of the car, but it was no use the car was heading towards the presidium commons.

"Brace for impact!" The car crashed hard just outside a sporting goods store. The team had survived…barely. "Everyone okay?"

"Yeah, I can't wait fuck that bastard up" Jack said.

"For once we agree" Miranda said.

Shepherd kicked the door open and the team got out. Shepherd looked around, it looked like the commons but he didn't recognize any of the landmarks. "Liara, where did we land?"

"In the upper parts of the Presidium, the emergency docks should just be an elevator away" The presidium was a different place when it was quiet, like Cerberus sucked all the life out of the area. Shepherd's com opened.

"Shepherd? Your car stopped, why?" Bailey asked.

"That assassin bastard got us, don't worry he'll get his" Shepherd said. "The Council?"

"Most of the guards are dead; I think Kolyat's the only one left" he said. "The fact that they are still alive means…"

"Udina's waiting for something or someone" Shepherd said. "We need to hurry" Gun shots soon rang out in the plaza. "Incoming!" The team took cover as an Atlas got the jump on them, surrounded by phantoms and nemeses. The phantoms had black light armor like the assassin and a sword; the soldiers didn't bother with cover as their agility was enough for them to dodge their shots. When one lost their barrier, they would cloak themselves make it hard to shoot them. Then there was the Nemesis…every time they tried to get their distance the snipers would try to get a bead on them and with the gun fire of the Atlas they were locked down in cover.

Jack blew back the phantoms too close to them and while Liara and Miranda attacked the Nemesis and the Atlas. Shepherd took out his Blackstorm and fired taking out the Phantoms and Nemesis. The Atlas fired at Shepherd with a rocket, demolishing the cover he was using. He rolled inside the music store, while Liara and Miranda began crumbling its armor. Jack summoned her annihilation field and smashed the cockpit window with her tendrils and then shot the pilot. The fight should have ended then, unfortunately, Cerberus had other plans. Shuttles came in at the side of the Common. "Shit, we don't have time for this…"

"Boy Scout, you go ahead, I'll slow these fuckers down" Jack said getting into the Atlas.

"Okay, just watch your back, remember you're still a Cerberus target" Shepherd said.

"Got it" Jack then looked at Miranda. "Yo, Cheerleader!" Miranda looked back.

"Good luck, good luck with your sister" Miranda didn't say anything, she just nodded. The team went straight ahead to the next plaza, according the Bailey the elevator in Shalazar led to the emergency docks. The docks were used to get the Council on to the Destiny Ascension during Saren's attack on the Citadel three years ago. More Cerberus troops came after the team, slowing them down however eventually got the elevator only to see the assassin entering; the team ran only for the elevator to close before they got there. Miranda went to the other elevator and forced it opened.

"Shepherd in here" Miranda said. The team jumped into the shaft. Shepherd raised his com.

"Bailey, we're in the shaft, do something"

"Okay, hang on, this will be a fast ride" The team held on to the rails as the elevator came went up the shaft.

"Status report on the assassin"

"I made sure he's not going to get there, I've made his elevator stop on every floor" Bailey said. "But you should watch your back, anyway"

"Got it" Shepherd said. The elevator the team was on, caught up the assassins. "I see his elevator"

"Shoot the power conductors, it will kill his elevator" Shepherd nodded to his team and Liara and Miranda shot the assassin's elevator's the power conductor and the elevator came to complete stop. "Incoming Phantoms, above you" The team looked up and saw another elevator with the phantoms on top of it. The Phantoms jumped on their side but was stopped by Miranda's snap freeze and they were pushed off the elevator where they heard a faint shatter down below.

"Shepherd, bad news"

"What now?"

"The assassin has jumped to another elevator and he's overridden my controls" Bailey said. "He's on his way up and I can't stop him"

"Don't worry, I'll handle it" The team met up with another elevator. "Life signs in that elevator shoot those conductors" Liara and Miranda nodded and shot the conductors and the elevator fell, slowing down the assassin more.

"Shepherd, the council's elevator is right above you" Bailey said. When the Council's elevator and their elevator met Shepherd and the team jumped to the next elevator. A bullet was fired below barely missing Shepherd's head, then there were multiple shots and the team scattered. It was Kolyat, he didn't know they were on top. The elevator stopped and the team climbed down only to find the elevator empty when they met them, Liara closed the door and locked it. Kolyat and the Councilors looked at the team surprised, Shepherd knew that this looked really bad but with Cerberus coming it would have to wait.

"Shepherd?" Kolyat asked. "What's going on?"

"What do you think? Shepherd blocking our exit, he's with Cerberus" Udina said. Kolyat looked at him, Shepherd glared at Udina…he was going to play the blame game to cover his ass.

"That's fucking rich, coming from a traitor from you!" Shepherd growled.

"What are you talking about? Udina was with us this whole time" Kolyat said.

"You've all been played, this whole time Udina was in talks with Cerberus" Shepherd said. "Valern confirmed it, before he was killed"

Tevos and Sparatus looked at each other. "The salarian councilor is dead?" Shepherd nodded.

"Because Shepherd killed him! He's the traitor"

Sparatus looked at Udina. "If he was… why tell us? When he could just kill us all?"

"What Shepherd said is possible; we doubted him before and look where it got us…" Kolyat looked at Shepherd not sure what to do.

"Kolyat I'm telling the truth, I've been in talks with Bailey…" Shepherd said. "There's a squad of Cerberus troops in the elevator, you open that door and you'll join Valern"

Udina scoffed. "We don't have time for this…" he said walking over to the terminal.

"I hope you're right…" Kolyat said. Shepherd nodded.

Kolyat turned to Udina and aimed his gun at the councilor. Udina looked at him and frowned. "What do you think you're doing, officer? Surely you don't believe him" he said. "Think about what you are doing, officer I could have you tried for treason…"

"I don't know what to believe, but I do trust Shepherd and I trust my guts" Kolyat said. "Udina, step away from the console and we'll talk"

"To hell with this!" Udina said on the terminal. Shepherd looked back and the elevator lock was being undone. Shepherd raised his gun, but Tevos walked up to Udina hoping to talk him down. Udina pushed her, and got out a pistol.

"Gun!" Shepherd without even thinking lifted his gun and pulled the trigger and a round came through the human's skull, and he fell with heavy thud.

"The door!" Sparatus said. Shepherd, the team, and Kolyat got in front of the remaining councilors, ready for a fight. The door opened to reveal Bailey, with his men and Jack.

Shepherd blinked. "Bailey?"

"Made as fast as we could, looks like you took care of things here"

"So it was true, we were in danger, but you said Cerberus was in the elevator" Tevos said looking at Shepherd.

"Cerberus pussed out, Shepherd just saved your asses" Jack said. She then smirked. "Again"

"Then that's two I owe you, my life and Palaven" Sparatus said.

"You can repay me by helping with the war…" Sparatus and Tevos nodded.

"Do have any idea why Cerberus would do this?"

Shepherd shook his head. "But I plan to find out" Bailey and his men secured the councilors and the team went with him, leaving only Shepherd and Kolyat.

"Well I should go and help Bailey" Kolyat said. "Sorry for the stand-off, Shepherd…."

Shepherd shook his head. "Don't worry about it…Thane would be…." He lowered his head. "…proud"

The young drell noticed the sad look on Shepherd's face. "Shepherd…what's wrong?"

Shepherd took a deep breath. "Kolyat, it….it's about your father…"

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	40. Chapter 32: Resolve

**Chapter 32: Resolve**

_**Cerberus Shuttle**_

Kai Lang and Orianna made it back to the shuttle on the way back to the shuttle after trying to avoid C-sec however it wasn't without problems, a lot of his men was either captured or dead. The assassin could only growl at this embarrassing retreat, the plan was perfect but they did not expect Shepherd to be back on the Citadel so soon after Tuchanka. He opened a com to HQ, he absolutely dreading his report, the Illusive Man was not someone he wanted to disappoint…failure tend not to be healthy for one's life.

"Yes" The Illusive Man said.

"Things didn't go as planned" Kai Lang said. "The council is still in control of the Citadel and Udina's dead"

"By mission parameters, I'd say it was a success" Illusive Man said. Kai Lang looked at his leader blankly, that was not the answer he expected. As much as he respected the lengths the Illusive Man was willing to go for his goal, the man was still an enigma to him…a trait that annoyed him.

"Sir?"

"Udina was expendable and Valern is dead, the Council has weakened dramatically" he explained. "Not to mention you killed Mr. Krios, you've shaken Shepherd's resolve, he should be out of our way for a while"

Lang scoffed. "Doesn't fell like a victory" he said. "So what now?"

"There are other plans in motion. I'll fill you two in when you return"

"Understood"

_**Bailey's office**_

Shepherd came in to Bailey's office hoping to find any clues on what Cerberus wanted and who that assassin was, they caught him off guard, but next time he would be ready. He opened the door to find Bailey cleaning up the rubble of his ruined office. The Council thanked Bailey for leading C-sec through this trying time and promoted him to Executor due to last one being killed by Orianna, although Bailey didn't want the promotion he was once again finding himself say yes again. He shook his head. "Ain't this a bitch? I didn't even want to be Commander and now I'm starting to miss the position…." He looked back at Shepherd and nodded for him to come in.

"Look at the bright side; you'll get a nicer office at least…." Shepherd said.

"Until something else happens…I'm getting too old for this shit…" Bailey grumbled. "Something you need?"

"Do we have anything on our man?"

Bailey sighed. "We looked all over, but we can't find any traces of our assassin friend" he said. "And we can't even ID him, because he released a VI into the Citadel's system, erased footage of him wherever he went"

"My guess? he didn't trust Udina's plan to work" he said. "I'll say this, whoever this guy is, he's good"

Shepherd crossed his arms. "I don't think it's him, he doesn't seem like the type to plan anything" he said. "Anyway, he's a sadistic bastard, he'll show up again"

Bailey snorted. "Excuse me, if I'm not reassured by that"

"So what happens now?" Shepherd asked.

Bailey sighed and sits in his chair, he looked incredibly tired. There was going to be lots of work going ahead….casualty reports, talking to the families of the fallen officers and keeping order on the station. But the fact of the matter is that, the confidence of the civilians has been shaken to their core, not only Udina was in Cerberus' pocket but he and Councilor Valern is dead. There were even talks among the refugees to leave the Citadel…even though nowhere was safe from the reapers. "Don't know…but I know this, the Council needs two new members quickly" he said. "There's a lot of uncertainty all around, they and C-sec need to get back the public's confidence"

Shepherd nodded. "If you need any help, my team and I are on standby." He said. " The crew need some time off after this, anyway…"

"Thanks Shepherd, and I'll pay you back, we're just so stretched out…."

"I understand" Shepherd then thought back to Kolyat; he just lost his father in the coup attempt, unceremoniously gutted by that assassin bastard, Thane never even gotten to see his son one last time before dying and Kolyat never got to say good-bye. Shepherd knew the feeling well… "Bailey, where's Kolyat?"

Bailey lowered his head. "Over at the morgue, I gave him time off to say goodbye, I don't think he's left since…." He said sadly. "Poor kid, he just got his father back and he loses him like this…"

"I'll go speak to him…"

Bailey nodded. "Give him my condolences…"

_**The Morgue**_

Shepherd made it to the morgue to see Kolyat to see if he was okay. The staff was working overtime to identify the many victims of Cerberus' attack. The look of the bodies lying with sheets on top of them disturbed the spectre, this looked to similar to what he saw on Mindoir. Some of the bodies were small; it seems not even children were spared from Cerberus' ruthlessness. He met with another C-sec officer. "Where is officer Krios?"

"He's in the back, sir" the officer said. "I would tread quietly…"

"Understood" As he went deeper into the morgue, he saw body of Councilor Valern, the once powerful politician, reduced to just another corpse in the room made Shepherd realized that in the end they were all the same and was going to the same place. He bowed to his body as a sign of respect, not even he deserved to die like he did. "I may not have agreed with you but, I'm sorry you ended dead, because of me, forgive me…" He looked around for Udina's body, but didn't see it…it was not surprising.

"Must have spaced him, couldn't have happened to better guy" he said coldly. He went on to see Kolyat in the back, he was just there, standing and staring at his body. "Kolyat"

"Shepherd, thanks for coming, dad appreciate it" Kolyat said.

"How are you doing?"

Kolyat lowered his head. "What do you want me to say, Shepherd?" he asked. "My father was the only one I had left, and now he's gone"

"You have him in your heart always"

"Ten years, I haven't seen him since I was ten years old, a year and five months is not enough to have someone in your heart, especially when they been out of your heart for that long" Kolyat said sadly.

"Do you hate him?"

"I…" he hesitated a little. "…I don't know, on one hand I hated him for leaving me and mom, leaving me to deal with mom's death, but now I understand, he had a responsibility to the innocent" he said. "A responsibility that falls to me"

Shepherd looked at him. "What do you mean?"

"Dad always said that one of his greatest regrets was that he was not going to see the end of this war and that he was not going to help you fight this evil" Kolyat said. "He told me that it was you who gave him the will to live again, and for that I'm thankful"

"So let me repay you by joining you"

"Are you sure, Kolyat?"

"I've never been so sure in my life, please Shepherd let me honor my father's memory and fight with you" Shepherd hesitated a little, he knew Thane never wanted for Kolyat to be like him. Kolyat looked at Shepherd, his eyes burning with determination; he was definitely no longer the boy he met a year ago. He was a man, if Thane was here he would be happy how his son turned out.

"Alright, you can come with me, but know this fighting in Thane's honor means having his burden on your shoulders also" Shepherd said. "Can you handle it?"

"Yes" he said firmly. Shepherd held out his hand and Kolyat took it.

"Welcome to the team" Shepherd said. "When you get the chance, report the Normandy"

Kolyat nodded. "I will, first let me say goodbye first" he got out a small book.

"What's that?"

"A book of prayers, when my people were rescued by the Hanar we adopted part of their religion and mixed it with ours" he explained. "I want to pay my respects"

"Is it okay I join you?"

"Of course" Kolyat said opening the book. "Kalahira, this one's heart is pure, but beset by wickedness and contention."

"Kalahira, wash the sins from this one and set him on distant shore of the infinite spirit." Shepherd said. "Guide this one to where the traveler never tries, the lover never leaves, and the hungry never stave."

"Guide this one, Kalahira, and he will be a companion to you as he was to me." They said together.

"Good bye, old friend"

"Good bye, Father"

_**Bailey's Office**_

Kolyat went to Bailey's office even though he joined the Normandy crew, he wanted to say good-bye, and after all he gave him a chance even though he was criminal at one point. He still remembers his C-sec training, it was tough, and it broke him of his arrogance, but at the same time it made him better than was before, both physically and mentally. Bailey was busy organizing the other officers for the long haul, when he was done Kolyat walked towards him.

"Hey Bailey"

"Kid, I'm surprised to see you so soon" He then looked at sad look on Kolyat's face. "What's wrong?"

"I'm here to say good-bye"

"What do you mean?"

"I decided to join Commander Shepherd in his fight against the reapers" Kolyat said. "I know it's on short notice, I hope you don't hold it against me"

Bailey shook his head. "Of course not, Shepherd couldn't have a better person on his team" he said. "I always knew something big was going to happen in your life, I just wished it wasn't like this"

"It's okay…"

Bailey chuckled. "You've gotten stronger, kid, your old man would be proud" he said. "Just be careful out there" Bailey held out his hand and Kolyat shook it.

"You too"

_**The Normandy**_

The Normandy crew went into the war room, and met with Shepherd to meet their newest member of the team. Shepherd didn't see Miranda in the group, he was not surprised after what happen with her sister…she needed time. "We've been through a lot lately, losing Mordin and Thane hasn't been easy" The team nodded and agreed. "But with the reapers out there, we don't have time to mourn them"

"But we can make sure their sacrifice was worth it" he said. "But enough sadness, we're here to welcome the newest member of our team" Shepherd nodded and Kolyat walked beside him and nodded to the team."

"This is Kolyat Krios, son of Thane and he's chosen to join us, I want you treat him with same respect you given to his father" The team went towards him and welcomed the young drell to the team. Kolyat looked bashful, he wasn't used to being welcomed in such a way…he bowed his head.

"Thank you and I hope to work with you soon"

"So what now Shepherd?" Liara asked.

"We have three days of shore leave, after all that's happened I think we deserve one and then we meet with the Migrant Fleet" Shepherd said. "Dismissed" The team left and Shepherd made his way to the comm room. "Anderson, Hackett"

"I heard it was rough out there" Anderson said

"You have no idea"

"I still can't believe Udina would betray us" Hackett said.

"Believe it, that SOB was always power hungry, good riddance I say" Shepherd said. "Still, no way we can rest, especially with that assassin asshole out there" He showed an image of him on his omni-tool.

"Kai Lang" Anderson growled.

Shepherd was surprised at the anger his mentor was radiating. "You know him?"

Anderson nodded, as it turned out Kai Lang was something of a prodigy the youngest person to ever achieve N7 Fury status. This was surprising to Shepherd, as good as he was he has yet to achieve the Fury status, the Alliance equivalent to his Spectre status. He was very promising, until he showed his true colors twelve years ago, he assassinated an asari matriarch from Thessia and a beloved one at that. If it wasn't Anderson's actions, the Alliance would have been stripped of their associate status and at war with the Asari Republics within the same week. "I shot him in both legs, and we tossed him in the brig to rot…looks like Cerberus had other plans"

"Be careful Shepherd, Kai Lang is a vicious, sadistic bastard" Anderson said. "He gets off on the carnage, and knowing him he's going to be gunning for you…you've piqued his interest… "

Shepherd crossed his arms. "Fine by me, next time we meet, he dies" he said "count on it"

_**Kolyat Krios**_

_**Profession: C-sec Officer**_

_**Weapons: Sniper rifle and SMG**_

_**Powers: Marksman, Recon Mine, Shredder ammo, and Homing grenade**_

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	41. Chapter 33: Growing Up

**Chapter 33: Growing Up**

_**Spectre Training Area**_

"Keep those barriers up!" Jack barked. Her students were clustered together reinforcing the barrier as Jack kept pounding it with shockwaves. Kelly was on the side with medi-gel in case something happened, although she was finding herself using it less and less now…the kids had gotten better with their powers. She smiled when she remembered their first class with Jack…

_**A year ago…**_

_It was the first day of class and the students were nervous as hell, after the introduction from their biotic instructor yesterday they were not looking forward to the Psychotic Biotic from hell. "So…anyone want to skip? There's still time…" Prangley said nervously._

_Chan gulped. "And have her hunt us down, no thanks…" he said grimly. Prangley was really nervous now, he's known Chan since their first year the man was the calmest person among the class. He didn't even sweat when it came to hard-asses like Jalla, but this time he was dreading this as much as he was. The door opened, and in came Jack and Kelly, the redhead smiled and waved at the class but Jack held a scowl that almost made them void themselves. Kelly kissed the woman on the lips, much to their surprise Jack smirked before facing them with the same scowl._

_Kelly went to the seat at the side of the room, the room they were in was made to withstand biotic blasts due to the biotic dampeners placed in corners of the room, even biotic bursts would only do half the damage than usual. However even with such safety measures in place it was still dangerous for non-biotic because they couldn't stop an object at high speed like they could, so a safe room was built so high-ups could observed. "Try not to killed them Jack…these are kids after all" she said._

"_No promises…" Jack said. The students gave a collective gulp. "Alright form up, I want you to hit me with your best shot" The students looked at each other, she was nuts there was fifteen of them and one of her…even if she was more experienced than them she couldn't block fifteen shots from all sides._

"_But ma'am…we could seriously hurt you…" Rodriguez said._

_Jack just smirked. "Please you wouldn't even make me sweat" she said. "Now form up and surround me" The students surround the ex-con and glowed blue, Jack summoned her barrier and the barrage of biotic blasts began. Jack yawned as the students were trying breach her barrier but to no avail. Moments later, they were staring to tire out while Jack hardly broke a sweat._

"_This is crazy, she's just toying with us" Grayson said._

"_Not for long…" Smith said. Smith was another first year and known for her tendency to bend the rules. She charged her biotics and formed a warp field in her hand; her friend looked at her with wide eyes._

"_Jada, you know we're not allowed to cause a biotic burst!" Smith ignored her and threw her warp field at Jack; she gave a cocky smirk thinking she got her. She was wrong, when the warp field hit the barrier it flashed for a bit and then the barrier burst causing a shockwave that made the students fall over. When the dust cleared, Jack was in the middle of the room with a smug smirk on her face. "Shit, how did she do that?"_

"_It seems I got my work cut out for me…" Jack said. "I mean that was pitiful, a volus could break my barrier in half the time….warm up's over"_

_**Now**_

Since that first class, Jack had worked on conditioning and endurance. Her teaching style was unusual to say the least but the next few months it started to work out, they were able to break her barrier. More importantly she had gained their admiration, they still called her the Psychotic Biotic but it was with fondness and not fear. Jack hit their barriers hard with high-speed volleys of throw field, trying to break their barriers the students' legs buckled a little but they held up against the assault until Jack relented.

"Good job, go take a break" The students scattered and Kelly came to Jack with a towel and water. The ex-con took it and wiped her face off.

"They're doing great, Jack…I'd say they're ready" Kelly said.

Jack frowned a little. "Maybe…"

Kelly looked at her girlfriend. "Something wrong?" she asked. Jack showed her a message that she received from Hackett, it was duty rosters listed for Terra Nova, Elysium, and Shanxi apparently the admiral was so impressed with what they did during the coup that they were going to be on evacuation duty. Not only that they had been requested by the Hierarchy to help with some of the turian colonies, they were going to be busy for a while. "Isn't this what you wanted?"

Jack sighed and looked back at her students. "Cerberus is one thing, but the fucking reapers…?"

"They're going in for support, they'll be off the frontline like you wanted" Kelly said.

"Anything can happen when it comes to the reapers, Red" she said. "Shit, I mean I almost lost you to the fucking Collectors a year ago…" Kelly kissed Jack on the cheek and gave her a reassuring smile.

"But you didn't…and you won't lose your students, they've been trained by the best…you" She said. "I'm just sorry I can't go with you…"

"Better that way, you ain't a fighter plus these people need you here" Jack said. Kelly nodded, she knew she was right but still it wasn't any easier.

"So when do you leave…?" Kelly said reluctantly.

"Tomorrow…Hackett says it's getting bad out there" she said. Kelly didn't say anything, she just nodded. Jack kissed her forehead; she knew it broke her girlfriend's heart to see her leave. "Hey, I ain't got to leave till tomorrow, let's go out just you and me…"Kelly looked at her and smiled, the ex-con took it as a yes. Jack kissed her lips and looked at her students who stood at attention.

"Listen up, we going out on our first mission tomorrow, you're free to do what you want until curfew" Jack said. "I want you bright and early at six" The students gave a roar of 'yes ma'ams' and left the training room leaving Jack and Kelly alone. "So what do you want to do?"

Kelly smiled. "Well I always wanted to check out that Purgatory place for a little dancing"

_**The Normandy**_

Shepherd went to the com room; Hackett said he had some information for him. "Shepherd, I have some good news to share" Shepherd had hoped it was about the council getting new members, so he could leave for the Migrant Fleet. But to his disappointment it was about no such thing. "I've been in talks with the Asari Republic, the matriarchs has promised the Destiny Ascension not mention they've requested an update on the Crucible"

That surprised Shepherd, Tevos made it clear that she thought the plan was doomed to failure for her and the matriarchs to change their tune so quickly meant one thing…"They're getting scared…"

Hackett nodded. "That would be my guess, Asari space has yet to see the reapers yet but we're getting reports of reaper scouts at their borders" he said. "Not to mention the fact Cerberus almost took Tevos down"

"That's good; it's about time they got serious…what about the salarians?" Hackett looked at him grimly; the Dalatrass held a grudge due to Shepherd curing the genophage and was holding back resources for the war despite the fact the reapers being out there. Shepherd frowned; she was going to get her whole race killed. "Fucking bitch, I'm only glad Mordin isn't here to see she's doing to their people…"

"However it's not all bad, we've been hearing chatter that not all the Salarian's share the Dalatrass' views and some are even going behind her back" Hackett said. "There's a very good chance they may come around"

"We'll have to see…" Shepherd said. "And the Crucible?" Hackett's eye lit up a little and instead of telling him he brought up the updated reports. Shepherd's eyes went wide when he saw this. "Am I reading this right?"

"Yes, our scientists' estimates suggests fifty percent of the work done already"

"That quickly?" Shepherd asked in disbelief.

Hackett nodded. "Yes, bringing on the rachni was a huge help in construction" he said. "And the krogan are surprisingly capable with a hammer, so far the only missing piece of the puzzle is the Catalyst"

"I'm working on it" he said.

"Good, cause our scientists are very optimistic that this can destroy the reapers" he said. Hackett signed. "Its been some time since we've seen a light at the end of the tunnel since this war started"

Shepherd nodded. "I know that feeling, don't worry I won't let you down"

"We're still in this; the gods of war haven't let us down yet"


	42. Chapter 34: Paragon Lost

**Chapter 34: Paragon Lost**

James and Lia was in the lower docks helping the refugees, Lia was helping the injured that couldn't be seen by the doctors due to them being injured while James was passing out supplies however it was not easy. With the Cerberus coup fresh on everyone's mind, it was chaos with lots of dead or wounded. Adding to that was the paranoia factor, the fact that any human could be Cerberus sleep agent have caused riots among the alien populace, giving C-sec more headaches to deal with. Cerberus may not have taken the station, but they had succeeded in breeding distrust in the populace which made helping people very tough to do.

Lia was with a ornery old human that was injured by Cerberus; she had spent the last couple of minutes trying to help with his wound. However the human would not have it. "I said I don't need any help!"

Lia frowned. "You stubborn bosh'tet! You need medical treatment; otherwise your arm is going to get infected!"

"Then get me a human to do it, how do I know you didn't do something to that medi-gel?" the old man said. "You aliens have attacked humans left and right, thinking we're Cerberus agents"

Lia sighed. "I told you I don't hate humans, my boyfriend is one and most of my crewmembers are humans too"

The old man scoffed. "A human dating a suit rat? Hah! I'll believe it when it when I see it" he said. "Get me a human to treat me or you can get the hell out of my face" Lia clenched her fists tightly, the Quarian really wanted to punch this human out, but instead she had a devious smile on her face.

"Okay, you want a human, fine you'll get one…" She opened her omni-tool. "Jimmy, could you come here I need your help…" Moments later James came over to see what his girlfriend needed help with as , the old man stared at the gigantic human and gulped, maybe getting treated by the Quarian wasn't such bad idea after all.

"Uh…w-who the hell is this?"

Lia grabbed her boyfriend's arm. "My boyfriend…." Lia said coyly.

"What's up, Lola?"

"This human won't let me help him, because I'm a Quarian, he wants another human to treat him" Lia said winking at James.

James smirked getting what she had planned. "Oh really, okay if he doesn't want to get treated by your gentle hands, then I'll treat him, but I should warn him, this might hurt a little…" He cracked his hands and the old man paled.

"Uh…on second thought, maybe getting treated by the Quarian won't be so bad" he said nervously. "Well, what are you waiting for? If you're going to treat me then do it!" Lia happily nodded and gave the old man a shot of medi-gel and wrapped up his arm. The old man walked away in embarrassment.

Lia hugged James. "Thank you Jimmy, I'm sorry I had to use you to as a scare tactic…"

"Don't worry, I enjoyed it…" A voice spoke up.

"It's good to see you haven't changed" a female voice said. James and Lia looked at the source and spotted an asari in a blue and white dress walking towards them. James looked at her with wide eyes.

"Treeya…"

The asari smiled. "Hello Vega" she said. "It's good to see you again" James looked at Treeya, was an anthropologist that was living on Fehl Prime at the time. She was a peaceful person and hates the idea of warfare and violence but fought to protect the colony from the Blood Pack before James and his squad landed. He then felt an elbow to his side, it was his girlfriend, his very jealous girlfriend.

"Jimmy, who is this?" Lia asked trying to keep her jealousy in check.

The asari just smiled and held out her hand. "My name is Treeya A'Sal, I'm an old friend of Vega when he was stationed on Fehl Prime" she said. "You are?"

Lia shook her hand curtly. "Lia…Lia vas Normandy"

Treeya blinked. "Normandy? Commander Shepherd's ship?" she then smiled at James. "Finally fighting beside your hero, I see..."

James rubbed his head sheepishly and blushed. "Heh, yeah..."

"Perhaps we can have dinner, talk about old times" she said. "And of course Lia can come, also" James was about say something, but Lia beat him to the punch.

"We would love to, but we have a mission coming up pretty soon, too bad…"

James looked at her; he had never seen Lia so jealous before…he guessed all that talk about Quarians being territorial with their mate was true. "Lola, we have a three day shore leave, Loco said so"

Treeya's eyes lit up, and Lia's shoulder's slouched in defeat. "You do? Well this is great I know a great place on the Presidium" she said. "I'll see you both soon" She walked away, Lia calmed down.

James wrapped his arm around Lia's waist. "You know, you don't have to be jealous of Treeya"

Lia glared at him. "Jealous?! I am not jealous!" James raised a brow. Lia blushed and sighed. "Okay, maybe a little…I'll apologize to your friend; I must have been so rude to her"

James smirked. "Yes you were, but luckily she don't hold grudges"

Lia crossed her arms and scoffed. "Did you like her?"

"Yeah, at one point, but…it never got to that point" he said. Then he added softly. "We were too busy mourning…" Lia was taken aback by the sadness in his voice as he saw James walk away. Much later James perked up and they went to meet Treeya at a levo/dextro restaurant called Indenra, a Turian and Asari owned restaurant. As the couple got in, Lia could feel all the stares from the patrons even when they should busy with the war, they still found a way to make her feel unwelcomed. Lia looked forward trying to ignore the stares; James put his arm around her waist and smiled at her.

"Hey Lola, fuck 'em, they mess with my girl and they have to go through me…" Lia smiled and gripped his hand. They met Treeya in a dark purple dress, she got them a booth in the VIP section, when asked how, and she told them that the asari owner and she go a long way back. They sat down and order their food; while they were waiting they were talking about their time on Fehl Prime. It was funny to see her boyfriend get bashful at all the embarrassing things he and his friend got into back then, she smirked now she had stuff to use against him when he decides to tease her.

"So Lia how did you and Vega meet?" she asked.

"We met at a tech store on Illium, I was having trouble with this bosh'tet clerk and he helped me out" she explained. "Afterwards he gave me his code for his omni-tool and we've been talking off and on"

Treeya smirked. "So that's why, you were grinning like an idiot back on the colony"

James blushed and looked at Lia. "What can I say? Cute girls do that to me"

Lia blushed tried to change the subject. "Fehl Prime sounds so nice…." James and Treeya got very quiet, and they just nodded their heads solemnly.

"It was…" Treeya said sadly.

Lia tilted her head. "Was?"A turian woman called out their name and Lia went up to get their food leaving James and Treeya. The two just sat silently until Treeya spoke up.

"So, you never told her?"

James sighed sadly and looked out the window thinking back to that day on the Collector ship, saving Treeya and the intel or let her die and save the colonists. His greatest failure, how could he tell her that he sacrificed tens of thousands of colonists for intel that turned out to be useless in the end? Treeya placed a hand on his arm; James looked at her as she gave him sad gentle look.

"It's not your fault, Vega; it would have been a hard choice for anyone…" Treeya said. "I don't blame you and neither does Todd…"

"Right…Milque how is he?" James asked. "Last I heard, you two were living together on Feros"

Treeya lowered her head and tears ran down her face. "He's gone…"

James looked at her. "What? How?" Feros was attacked without warning, during that time Milque was a member of a militia that protected the colony…he and his squad was called to fight them off so the civilians could escape. Treeya was one of the first one's off the colony despite the asari wanting to stay with him. A week later, Treeya had found out that Milque was killed by a brute; his body was so mutilated that the other squad that found his team couldn't identify him until he picked up his dog tags. Treeya reached down into her shirt and pulled out the dog tags, they were bent and still had a crust of dried blood on it, on it read 'Todd Milque, Delta Squad Marine'. James clenched his fist; he was now the last living member of the once proud Delta Squad. "Damn them…"

Treeya gripped the dog tags. "Alyssa, will never know her father"

"A kid? How old is she?" James asked.

"Only a year old, she's with my mother, Todd was so happy when he found out that he was going to be a father" Treeya said. "And the reapers took that away from him"

"Tell her, that Milque was a good man, and if he was still here, a better father"

"I do, everyday" she said "And what about you?"

"What do you mean?"

"Lia, you seem to keep her at arm's length" she asked. "Are you afraid of what she may think of you?"

"I…Lia's not a soldier, Tre, she wouldn't understand…"

'Vega, I'm not a soldier myself and I understand…that girl adores you, if can't trust the one you love with your burdens who can you trust?" Treeya said. "I know this is funny coming from a 103 year old asari, but life's too short…the reapers kill us all tomorrow and all you would have is you regret" Lia came back to the table with the food, the quarian apologized being late explaining the waiter got their orders wrong. James and Treeya waved it away and the three ate and continued talking. Later they parted ways with Treeya going home and Lia and James going back to the Normandy. As the couple was walking back to the docks, James looked at Lia as she was contentedly wrapped around his arm.

James stopped walking. "Lola, I…have to tell you something…" he said. "It's about what happened on Fehl Prime…"

Lia looked at him. "You don't have to, I could tell you didn't want to talk about it"

"But I want to, I want you to know I trust you with the good things and the bad…" he said. James took a deep breath. Three years ago Delta Team went to Fehl Prime to fight off the Blood Pack attacking the colony; most of the members were killed except for his commanding officer, himself and five of his teammates. They were able kill most of the Blood Pack and captured the leader. "We were then order to stay on the Colony to help build its defenses for when the mercs came back" he said. "A lot of good that did, as they were completely useless against seeker swarms."

"The Collectors…" Lia gasped. "And the colony…?" James looked away, the colonists were captured including his CO. James and his Squad fought desperately to free the colonist, even recruiting the help of the Krogan Blood Pack leader they captured and a trader revealed to be an agent for Cerberus. The collectors picked them off one by one but they were able to awaken the colonists and set the Collector ship to crash however the Cerberus agent betrayed them captured Treeya for the data on the Collectors. Lia gasped in horror when she put two and two together, James continued not facing the quarian. "It was either them or the Intel we had on the Collectors, Intel that could have been used to destroy them" he said. "I chose the intel…."

"Jimmy…"

He lowered his shoulders. "And the best part, in the end it was worth shit, because Loco took down the Collectors by then…"

"You didn't know, Jimmy, you couldn't have…" She said sadly.

James punched the wall. "It was still my call; if I had given up the Intel, those colonists would have lived!" James said sliding to floor. "April would have lived…"

"Who is April?"

"A little girl, from the colony, I promised her I would come back but…" James said with tears in her eyes. "…I killed her"

"Every night, I still see her, my old team, the colonists in my sleep" he said. "Pointing at me, blaming me…saying that I deserved to die for my failure, maybe they're right…"

"No they're not…" James looked up. "You did everything you could, what you did made sure that would die like they did…"

"How can you be so sure?"

"I've seen firsthand the type of decisions, Shepherd has to make on a daily basis" Lia said holding him. "it's what no person should have to burden, but you and Shepherd do it, because you two are good men, and the galaxies' lucky to have you"

"But never forget you have the crew, you have me, and I'll shoulder that burden with you…" Lia said. "Because I love you"

Lia touched her head to James and they just sat there silently until James spoke up. "Thank you Lola and I love you too…"


	43. Chapter 35: Family Matters Act 2

**Chapter 35: Family Matters Act2**

_**Presidium Commons**_

Garrus went to get something to drink at the bar, he was restless more restless than he's ever been. This morning he had gotten message from his father on Palaven, something he wanted since he left Palaven…however the joy he felt when he heard his father's voice turned to dread….

_**The Normandy-this morning**_

"_Dad ?" Garrus asked worriedly. The signal was breaking up, but he could tell his father was in trouble from the sounds of gunfire and explosions. He was in the thick of it, Garrus asked EDI to clear up the static on the terminal, the static was almost all gone and he could hear the sounds of battle clearly. However he could not hear his father, as minutes of silence passed Garrus' heart leapt to his throat as the turian began to dread the worse. _

"_Garrus?" Garrus looked at the terminal intensively. "Garrus, are you there?" _

"_Dad, it's me…where are you?" Garrus asked anxiously._

"_Thank the spirits you're alright…" Kazen said. Garrus almost had to laugh, his father was in the middle of a war field and he was more worried about him than himself. Then again, he was always like that…even when they didn't see eye to eye. "We're attempting to leave Palaven, we're heading to the evacuation centers…but it's bad the reapers are destroying every shuttle that tries to leave" Garrus' heart jumped a beat, if the reapers destroyed the center, his father and sister was as good trapped, then the signal abruptly cut off. His blood went cold as he tried to reconnect._

"_Dad, are you there? Come in" Garrus said. "EDI, can you boost the signal?"_

"_I will try, Garrus but there may be too much interference" the AI said._

_Garrus frowned. "Do everything you can…" EDI boost the signal just enough so it wouldn't glitch the systems. Garrus was waiting on bated breath watching for the signal indicator to go green._

"_Garrus…"_

"_Dad, are you okay?" Garrus said worriedly._

"_Yes, the reapers trying to cut off communication from the outside…had to use an old ID from the Reunification war" Kazen said. "The krogan are here in force, but the reapers are still advancing"_

"_Where are you now?"_

"_In an old hospital, we had to stop…Solana's hurt" _

_Garrus paled. "Hurt? How bad?"_

"_A broken leg. We're patching it up now" Garrus blood went cold as he heard an inhuman screech on the com; it was the unmistakable sound of a husk. And from the sound of it there was a lot._

"_Dad, you have to get out of there!" An explosion was heard in the background. "Dad!"_

"_We're fine, that was the gas tank I shot" Kazen said. "We're close to the evacuation area, there's only a few ships…I don't know if we'll make it in time. We…" The com abruptly shut off once again, all he could hear was static…he asked EDI to reconnect, however the AI could not get in touch with his father. Garrus just sat in his seat looking lost, his father and sister were stuck on their homeworld trying to run for their lives and he was stuck on the Citadel. He had never felt so helpless._

"_Spirits…if you really do exist…" Garrus said softly. "…Please watch over them. Let me see them again"_

_**Now**_

He went to the bar, and saw Liara at the same table…no doubt working hard. Garrus was glad to see her, with the uncertainty of his family's fate he needed someone to talk to. He went to the bar, and met a familiar face. Matriarch Aethyta, working the bar as usual. "Aethyta…glad to see Cerberus didn't get you"

The asari smirked. "It'll take five hundred more years before Cerberus get the jump on me" she said. "But damn did they left a mess, so many dead and now I'm working more shifts" The asari got him some turian wine; while Garrus was waiting he noticed Aethyta would gaze at Liara from time to time. In fact, every time Garrus came to this café he always saw Aethyta and always when Liara came to the same café. At first he had written it off as an irregular work schedule but it was beginning to become too coincidental that they just so happen to be at the same café all the time.

"I've noticed you staring at my girlfriend a lot, anything interesting?" Garrus asked.

"Don't know what you're talking about, place got a nice view of the rest of the presidium…even for here" Garrus gave her a look, Aethtya snorted. "Shit, I guess that was a lame lie…"

"So you were staring at Liara…what are you up to?"

Aethtya groaned and looked at Liara. "Did Liara ever tell you about her father?" she asked. "Well you're looking at her…" Garrus looked at her with wide eyes; to think this whole time he was talking with Liara's parent. "Nezzy took her before she was born….a lot of good that happened…."

"If you're her father then why didn't you try and get in contact with her?" Garrus asked. Aethtya sighed and explained, it was politics that kept her from getting in touch with Liara. She was a black sheep among the Matriarchs; Aethtya supported the asari becoming more militant and active on the galactic stage, and believed that young asari should help improve society in their maiden years instead of becoming strippers or mercenaries. She even came up with the idea of the asari creating their own Mass relays, but was met with ridicule by the other Matriarchs. If the asari populace found out that Liara was the product of the radical matriarach it would have made things worse for her daughter and former bondmate. "I'm sure she would love to meet you"

Aethtya scoffed. "Doubt it…besides I doubt the Matriarchs would like me interacting with her"

Garrus frowned. "What do the Matriarchs have to do with anything?"

"They called me to keep an eye on her, Liara's one of the biggest info brokers in the galaxy and they're afraid she might sell Thessia's secrets to the highest bidders"

"She wouldn't do that, Liara loves her homeworld too much to do that" Garrus said.

Aethtya snorted. "Tell that to the old hags…anyway with her ties with Nezzy and her commander that used to work for Cerberus, they might have ordered at hit on her" Garrus clenched his fist, the asari could tell this was making him angry.

"Calm down kid, that's why I took this shit job to protect her."

"That's good, because they would have to get through me and I'm a very good shot" Garrus said firmly.

To his surprise, Aethtya gave a hardy laugh. "Tough, and willing to kill to protect his bondmate" She said. "Liara chose well, that's good to know because if you treated her badly…" Aethtya went back at looking at Liara, despite her gruff exterior Garrus could tell she wanted to talk to her. Though he wondered how Liara would take it, after all it has been a century.

"Hey Aethtya, no promises or anything but how about I talk to Liara for you?"

"Yeah, we'll see how that goes…." Garrus took his drink and went to meet Liara who was in talks with some scientists to work on the Crucible. She looked at Garrus and smiled.

"Go to this location and meet with Admiral Hackett, godspeed" Liara said. "Hello Garrus" She went and kissed the turian on the cheek.

"I had a pretty interesting talk with the bartender over there"

Liara took a sip of her drink and looked at him. "Is that so…?"

"Yeah, she's your father…" Liara went back to her datapad, no reaction…it was not what he expected. "Well?"

Liara sighed. "I know…that she's my father, Garrus" The turian looked at his girlfriend flabbergasted, the last time they had this talk Liara said she never knew her father. "When I first acquired the Shadow Broker's ship, I had found many files on many people across the galaxy…my mother was no different"

"It was there I found out about Aethtya and her relationship with my mother"

"So, why did you tell me you didn't know her?" Garrus asked.

"Because I don't consider her my father, she's been out of my life for a century" Liara said. "She's a stranger to me, besides this is hardly the time for family reunions" Garrus thought back to his conversation with his father, there was a chance that he and his sister died on Palaven. They may die tomorrow from a reaper attack, and Liara would regret never talking to her father…he couldn't let that happen.

"Li, go talk to her…" Garrus said.

"I told you, Garrus…"

"I know, but she really wants to see you..." he said. "You said it yourself, with your mother dead and your aunt close to indoctrination; you don't have much family left"

"It may your last chance to at least talk to her" Liara looked like she was deep thought; he had hope she would at least think about it. To his surprise, she came to her decision quite quickly.

"Fine I'll talk to her but only for you"

Garrus smiled. "That's all I ask…" The couple got up and went to the older asari.


	44. Chapter 36: Healing

**Chapter 36: Healing**

_**The War Room**_

Shepherd came over to the Com room; Hackett said he had big news regarding who will be taking Udina and Velern's place. With replacements to the council, he wouldn't have to worry about the Citadel and get back to dealing with the reapers. Not to mention the news will have a calming effect on the citizens. Shepherd went to the terminal and pressed the button. "Admiral…"

Hackett nodded. "We finally got confirmation on new members of the council" he said. "I think you'll like them, well one of them"

"Who are they?" Shepherd asked.

Two images appeared beside the admiral, a salarian in a white garb and a tanned human male in a dark brown suit with blue eyes. "Hurza Esheel, she will be replacing Velern and Dominic Osoba, an ambassador will do the same for Udina" Shepherd uploaded a bio on Esheel, according to her files; she is very practical with politics with a sort of Machiavellian edge. She thinks very lowly of her predecessor, Valern…thinking him as weak-mind fool that would only lead their people down a sewage pipe.

Shepherd snorted. "She sounds like she will be a joy to work with…" he said sarcastically.

"You may not like her, but she gets the job done, and she's already promised the full support of the Salarian Union" he said. "She doesn't agree with you curing the genophage, but she's looking at the big picture" Shepherd read Osoba's files, he was an up in-comer in Alliance politics, he had only been an ambassador for a year and already made a name for himself for clearing Shepherd's name. He was quite popular during his days as the representative from Shanxi in parliament; he's known to be firm but fair. "A good man, though I have concerns about how effective he'll be…"

"Why?"

Hackett sighed. "Recently, he just suffered a tragedy, his oldest son, Bilal was killed by Cerberus while stationed on Benning" he said. "He says he can do his job, but something this personal will probably be detrimental to his work"

"We've all had our tragedies, what's important is that you work through them" Shepherd said. "Any news on the Migrant Fleet?" Hackett rubbed his forehead, the Alliance were currently in talks with the fleet but it had been slow. The Admiralty Board were arguing on where to meet, Shepherd shook his head though he was not surprised the Migrant Fleet have been distrustful of humans since Cerberus attacked their ship two years ago. He would have thought the reapers would give them more incentive to trust the Alliance. "Sounds like them…oh well this will make Tali happy at least"

"In the meantime, I want you to go to this location on the Citadel and meet with a Dr, Garret Bryson"

"Why sir?"

"He has information on the reapers, something that can have a huge effect on the war"

Shepherd nodded. "Understood, I'll go right now"

_**The Citadel**_

Kaiden got off the Normandy and stared his shore leave, with all that's been happening it was good to take a rest and just forget about the reapers for once. As he went to turn the corner, he saw something that caught his eye, a dark-skinned man looking out in space.

"Could that be…?" He got closer and found out it was Cortez, and he looked like he was in deep thought. He gave a coy smile and snuck up behind him. "Hey, Steve!"

Cortez jumped and without thinking decked the Spectre and Kaiden was sent flying to the floor. When he saw who it was, Cortez quickly stiffened realizing he just punch his superior officer. "Oh my god! Kaiden, I'm so sorry!" Cortez went to treat his bruised cheek.

Kaiden chuckled. "It's alright, it was my fault anyway" he said. "Hell of a punch, by the way"

"I had boxing lessons from James' uncle, nothing special…" Cortez said. "How's your cheek?"

"Fine, biotics can heal pretty fast" Cortez helped Kaiden up where their faces were close enough to kiss each other; they blushed and quickly moved away from each other. Kaiden cleared his throat trying to remove the awkwardness of the situation. "S-so what's got you out here? You're usually on the Shuttle deck working on the Kodiak"

Cortez looked out at the Presidium. "Contemplating…this was a good place to clear my mind" he said. "Seeing so many ships out…it comforting…"

"Oh, what about? Why are we here? Man's inhumanity to man? What sound does a tree make when no one's around?" Kaiden asked jokingly.

Cortez chuckled. "Nothing that thought-provoking, you can be sure" he then became sad. "No, I was thinking about how I should say good-bye to Robert, the right way"

Kaiden lowered his head. "Oh, I see"

Cortez sighed. "I heard that there was a place where the refugees went to say good bye" he said. "I was going to go there, but…"

Kaiden looked at him. "But…?"

"I'm afraid of letting him go, of forgetting him" He said sadly.

Kaiden put his hand on Cortez's shoulder. "You'll never forget him, he'll always be there in your heart" he said softly.

"The way you talk…you been through this before?"

Kaiden nodded and sighed sadly. Even after all those years, talking about Aiden was hard. When he was fifteen they were students of Jump Zero, a precursor to the Alliance's Ascension Project. It was training from hell, their turian teacher Commander Vyrnnus got off making them suffer. A lot of the kids there were broken easily, but Aiden had it the worse. When he couldn't keep an object floating for three hours, Vyrnnus sent him to solitary confinement in a small room with no light and no sound. Three weeks later, he took a gun from the armory and ended his life.

"Oh Kaiden…" Cortez said softly.

"There I was fifteen years old, in love for the first time, seeing his boyfriend's brains all over his room" he said sadly. "For years I had nightmares…"

"How did you overcome it?"

Kaiden smiled a little. "I had a good friend tell me the same thing I told you" he said. "He was right, after a while the nightmares went away and I went on with my life"

Cortez tilted his head. "Who was the friend?"

"Who do you think?"

Cortez's eyes went wide. "You and Shepherd? "

Kaiden blushed. "It's not like that, trust me, our fearless leader don't swing that way"

Cortez smiled. "You had a crush on him…"

Kaiden coughed. "Anyway, what are you going to do?" He then saw Cortez walking towards the elevator. "Steve?"

"To say goodbye"

_**Refugee area**_

Cortez and Kaiden went to the Memorial wall, the sight there was hard to see, people crying about their lost loved ones. The wall was full of pictures of the people that lost their lives since the war began; it has only gotten larger since the Cerberus Coup. Cortez went up to the wall and stopped there. Kaiden watched as he took the halo of him and his husband…he gripped halo tightly, Kaiden walked up and placed his hand on his shoulder.

"Steve you don't have to do this if you don't want to…"

Cortez took a deep breath. "I have to, for my sake and his…" he said. "You're right; he'll always be a part of me"

"Your past is yours. No one can take it away" Cortez took a deep breath and placed it on a stand in front of the wall. He pressed the button of the recording one last time.

_"I love you, but I know you, don't make me an anchor"_

_"Please, I want you to move on, be happy; don't waste your life mourning me…"_

_"I love you, Steve…always"_

Tears ran down his face. "Goodbye, Robert and thank you…for everything" He then felt a hand from behind, it was Kaiden comforting him. Steve smiled softly. "You give me strength…Thank you"

Kaiden smiled. "Anytime, Steve…"

_**Dr. Bryson's lab**_

Shepherd had arrived by shuttle and gotten out of the car and walked into the doctor's lab. He looked around the room to find it was cluttered mess. Then he looked to his right and saw the remnant of Sovereign, the reaper Shepherd defeated three years ago.

_**Three Years ago**_

"_Well, shit." Was all Shepherd could say as the team fired at Sovereign, but its rapid jumps made it impossible to get a proper aim at him. Biotics helped a little, but Sovereign's own mass effect field, broke it out. Sovereign latched on to the wall and rapidly fired red bullets everywhere making cover all but useless. _

_Shepherd threw a couple of grenades at Sovereign, causing multiple explosions, but it didn't slow down the turian husk as latched to the floor. It moved slowly, never taking its soulless eyes off the team, it moved like a predator stalking its prey. The team moved also never taking their eye off Sovereign. Suddenly, Shepherd and Kaiden blasted Sovereign with warp fields, while Tali were trying to overload its shields. Sovereign jumped, blasting a stream of red energy, separating Shepherd from the rest of the team. With the Spectre alone, the husk pursued him, practically ignoring Tali and Kaiden. Shepherd move get some breathing room, and Tali and Kaiden shot the husk trying to get its attention but Sovereign was relentless in its pursuit blasting Shepherd. _

_A few of the blasts missed as he missed as he bobbed and weaved, however Shepherd got careless and hit wall as Sovereign fired off multiple red energy bullets. Shepherd raised his barrier as several of his red fireballs hit the Spectre. But the force was too much shattering his barrier and some of the bullets hit him square in the chest. Shepherd was thrown back and hit the wall hard. He shouted in agony clutching his chest, it was like he was melting from the inside out._

"_Wayne!" Kaiden and Tali said coming to his side._ _Sovereign prowled around Shepherd like a predator almost like it was taunting him, the spectre wasn't surprised he was completely at the husk's mercy. Tali and Kaiden fired at it, but at this point they were like mosquito bites as Sovereign just fired a red bullet to keep the human and the quarian from pestering it. Sovereign looked at Shepherd and lunged at him. This was it, he was going to die._

"_WAYNE!" Tali screamed. Then a miracle happened Sovereign dropped to the ground, glowing red, howling in pain. Shepherd was confused at first, but then looked out the window and saw the Normandy and other ships swarming the reaper. Sovereign couldn't protect itself and possess Saren's body at the same time; it was putting a strain on the reaper._

"_It's losing it…now's our chance….kill Sovereign!" he strained. Shepherd shakily raised his hand and caught the husk in a singularity field. He lifted it above the ground and held it there. Immediately, Kaiden and Tali raised their guns and fired until their guns over heated. Feeling its victory sliping away, Sovereign grew desperate and charged energy preparing to fire at Shepherd point-blank, if it was going to die he was going to take the Spectre with it. With Shepherd still in pain, he couldn't move. 'Shit' he thought._

"_Wayne!" Kaiden thought fast and engulfed the husk in a biotic field that started to eat away at the husk. Tali came in close with her shotgun and blasted it until it overheated._

"_Get away from him you bosh'tet!" Tali growled. Sovereign growled angrily and swung at the quarian, hitting her hard in the stomach._

"_Tali! Bastard!" Shepherd growled. Shepherd glowed blue and hit Soverign with the strongest biotic field he could muster, blowing it back on the grass. Sovereign, then started to screech an inhuman screech until was lying on the ground, twitching only slightly. Suddenly, the red energy that so far had been held inside it engulfed it turning into a bright blaze. Finally the screeches stopped as the blaze stopped only leaving ashes behind._

Shepherd scoffed, back then Sovereign was so terrifying and to see the once powerful reapers reduced to a sideshow relic gave the spectre a sense of calm. "Sovereign, vanguard of destruction…" he said dryly. "How's that working out for you, big guy?" A voice spoke up. Shepherd turned around and saw a thin older man in white lab uniform. His eyes looked tired, possibly from working up all night, behind him was a younger dark-skinned man working on some samples. Shepherd walked up to him and shook his hand.

"Ah, Commander…I am Dr. Garret Bryson" he said. "We have much to talk about"

_**Review and Comment**_


	45. Chapter 37: Leviathan pt1

**Chapter 37: Leviathan pt. 1**

_**The Citadel (Dr. Bryson's lab)**_

Shepherd was in Dr. Bryson's lab to talk to him about the reapers, but the good doctor had other plans and so was waiting patiently or trying to anyway. He looked around at the lab; the man was a pack rat and was definitely dedicated to his research. No doubt Mordin and Bryson would have a lot to talk about. Bryson was on the terminal compiling the data, while his assistant was gathering data from another console in the corner. "I want you to match this against all known locations and update the map. Then contact the field teams for progress reports" Dr. Bryson said.

"Yes sir" Hadley said. Dr. Bryson looked back at Shepherd; it seems he was ready to talk.

"Apologies, Commander" he said. "Hadley, the Leviathan data if you please" Hadley nodded and went to work while Bryson and Shepherd went to the front of the lab. Bryson's lab was something else; the equipment was state of the art, some of the equipment hadn't even been removed from the packaging yet. The Alliance spared no expense for the doctor's research, as he even had a galaxy map in the middle of his lab.

"Impressive setup" Shepherd said. "So what is all this?"

"Task force Aurora, our job is investigate legends, rumors…old stories about the Reapers before anyone knew they existed"

Shepherd snorted, it was too little too late, the reapers were here already. The Spectre looked back at the Sovereign's remains and shook his head, where were they when he was running around like a fool trying to warn the galaxy about the reapers? I would have made things easier. "Whatever you say…"

"Just so you know Commander, I believe the Alliance withholding this information was a mistake" Shepherd looked at the doctor. "If they had made the information about the beacons public, I believe we could have prepared for this war"

"But we can't change the past, however we can change the future" Bryson said. He walked over to the galaxy map. "You'll be very interested in what we have found"

"Which is?" Hadley then came into the room, Bryson looked to his left.

"Hadley, the data?"

"No" Hadley came forward and pointed a pistol at the doctor. He pulled the trigger and hit Bryson in the chest. Hadley then turned to shoot Shepherd, but the spectre bioticly threw the man against the wall and knocked him out. Shepherd came to the side of Bryson and checked his pulse, when he didn't feel anything he raised his com.

"This is Commander Shepherd! I need C-sec at my location!" Then he heard a voice, Shepherd looked back and saw Hadley was talking even though Shepherd knocked him out.

"You shouldn't be here…the darkness can't be breached…"

_**Hours later**_

C-sec had arrived to Bryson's lab and taken the doctor's body to the morgue. Two officers stayed behind to help with the investigation. Hadley in a chair and tied up just in case he tried something, the assistant just looked at the floor blankly having no reaction to the people walking around. Shepherd frowned at the man, something didn't feel right…"Any info on our friend?"

"Name is Derek Hadley, transit records show he's only been here for a couple of months"

"No criminal record, until now" a voice said behind Shepherd. Shepherd looked behind him and saw EDI entering the building.

"EDI, what are you doing here?"

"I monitored a C-sec alert from this location, were you harmed?" EDI asked.

"I'm fine, but I could use the help sorting this all out" Shepherd said. "Go through their files, I want to know what this task force was up to"

EDI nodded. "Of course" She went to the console.

"Commander, our friend is coming to" one of the officers said.

"What? I…" Hadley said. He then looked around. "Who are you people? Shepherd, why are my hands tied?"

Shepherd crossed his arms. "They're C-sec officers, as for your other question, it's because you shot your boss"

Hadley's eyes went wide. "I…I couldn't have…"

Shepherd frowned. "Bullshit, I saw you pull the trigger, you killed him" he said. "Don't play dumb"

"I'm not playing! I was gathering data for the doctor and…"

"And?"

"All of a sudden, I felt cold…dark…like I was somewhere else…" Hadley said. "Then I'm here…I didn't do it! It wasn't me! You have to believe me!"

"You expect me to believe that someone else was pulling the trigger?" Shepherd asked.

"But I would never do that!" EDI spoke up.

"Shepherd, I do believe he is telling the truth, all symptoms point to indoctrination" she said.

"I…Indoctrination? M…Me?" Hadley said shakily. EDI looked the information on the terminal and came up with a file called Leviathan. Shepherd frowned, research on the reapers and it led to a murder…something wanted to silence the doctor.

"This Leviathan. What is it?"

"It's…some kind of creature, our field teams have been tracking it" Hadley said. "That artifact came in from one of our members, Garneau. He even sent…"

"Sent what?" Hadley's head shot up and the man yelled causing Shepherd and the officers to take a step back. He violently shook in the chair until he abruptly stopped. Hadley looked up at Shepherd, with the same cold look he had when he killed Bryson. "What the hell…?"

"Turn back….The darkness cannot be breached" Hadley said coldly. His nose started to bleed and his eyes went back into his head. His head dropped and he became silent.

"Damn it! Get him over to the clinic; see if they can fix him"

"Yes sir!" The officers untied Hadley and carried him out of the lab.

"Commander, you'll want to see this, a message from Dr. Bryson to Admiral Hackett" EDI said. Shepherd walked to the terminal as the AI started the message.

"_Dr. Bryson, do have an update?"_

"_Admiral, the 'Leviathan of Dis' we've been investigating…I think we found something"_

"_Give me the brief"_

"_Twenty years ago, the Batarians discovered a Reaper corpse that had died in battle. They covered it up and denied its existence" Bryson said. "But that's small compared to what we found out"_

_Hackett frowned. "What could have killed a reaper in the first place?"_

"_Exactly, if we're right, that's Leviathan, the real one"_

"_It's worth pursuing. Continue your investigation and update me on the progress"_

"A reaper killer? Is that even possible?" Shepherd asked softly.

"Commander, there is more"

"_Admiral, we have a problem the reapers have been shadowing my team" Bryson said. "We're not the only one that is looking for Leviathan…"_

"_Why?"_

"_I have a theory that Leviathan is nothing short of a Reaper-killer, almost like an apex predator, and it has them nervous" Bryson said. "If we can find it, we can possibly turn the tides. I'm formally requesting assistance in tracking him down"_

"_You'll have it; this is your number one priority, doctor. Find that thing"_

"It seems we were to be the assistance"

Bryson was right, it was of some interest to him…something that scared the reapers that could turn the tide in the war. And this Garneau was the link to it, the only question now was where was he? "A reaper killer sounds useful"

"I would agree, if it wasn't for the potential dangers it could pose" EDI said. "Hadley did say they recently found a log from Garneau, I would start looking there." Shepherd nodded and they looked for the audio log near a terminal EDI was working on. The log spoke about an artifact that Garneau found; in fact it was the only thing he found. EDI found the artifact in question, a bluish-silver orb in a case; somehow Garneau believed it was a link to Leviathan.

"A projection but no location" Shepherd said. "Looks like we're doing this the hard way" EDI and Shepherd explored the lab for any clues. They had found several and used the galaxy map to narrow down Garneau's location. They found they had a hit when they looked into creature sightings, locations with element zero, and reaper activities.

"Shepherd, I think I found this Garneau, his last communication was here in the Caleston Rift"

Shepherd nodded. "Sounds good, let's find our boy"

_Mahavid is a metallic asteroid in the very sparse Nahata Belt. It has a high nickel and iron content in the form of kamacite. The rights to mine Mahavid belong to T-GES Mineral Works, who sell their products primarily to the colonists of Arvuna. A close fly-by reveals light emanating from its facilities.-Codex_

Shepherd was on the shuttle with Tali and Kolyat, heading for the Garneau's location. Kolyat had asked to come along with them hoping to prove himself. Shepherd brought him along, he was curious on how well Bailey trained him. Kolyat was sitting down with his legs shaking anxiously; no doubt he was nervous this was going to be his first time fighting reaper troops they would have to see if the young drell could hold his own. Shepherd walked to cockpit. "We're about five minutes out, Commander" Cortez said.

"So, what is this place?" Shepherd asked.

"Mining facility. T-GES Mineral Works, very small and out-of-the-way, perfect hiding place for our reaper killer"

"I just don't get it, if this thing is capable of killing reapers, why hide?" Kolyat asked.

"It could be the last of its kind, like Javik" Tali said. "Hopefully this Garneau can give us a clearer picture"

"Well it can't hide forever; we need an edge on the Reapers"

"Commander, Reaper signature in-bound" Cortez said.

"Speak of the devil…alright everyone get ready, we need to get to Garneau before the reapers" Shepherd said. "Take us in!" The Shuttle descends to the mining facility; it passed through facility's shield envelope and docked. Tali and Kolyat got out first, Shepherd looked back at Cortez.

"Cortez stand-by, we'll grab this guy and be right out" he said. "Keep me updated on the reapers"

"Yes Commander" The team took the lift down and saw two marauders and brute, Shepherd and the team took cover but the husks didn't seem to notice. "Scouting party…"

"It's too small, where are the others?" Tali asked.

"I can find out" Kolyat activated his omni-tool and shot a small disc on the wall.

"What is that?" she asked.

"A recon mine, it can scan for anything as long it was active" he said. "Hmm, from the looks of it, we have half a dozen husks, three marauders, four cannibals, and a brute"

"They seem to want get into that room badly"

Shepherd nodded. "Then let's disappoint them" he said. "Kolyat, you're on sniper support, Rookie, you're with me" Kolyat and Tali nodded and went to action. Shepherd overloaded the Marauders shields, catching their attention. Tali summoned her drone to keep the brute busy as Kolyat took aim and killed the marauders with his Incisor. Shepherd got out his hydra and pulled the trigger, taking out the Cannibals and the husks.

"Wayne, Tichatika is gone, the brute is coming your way" Tali said. Shepherd looked behind him and saw the Brute charge at him. Shepherd rolls out the way but the brute comes back around. The spectre froze the brute to slow it down and Kolyat threw a homing grenade at the brute and the giant husk fell over. Shepherd took out his Venom shotgun and shot the brute before it got back up. Tali blasted two more husks with her geth shotgun and her defense drone fried two more as they came close.

After a while, the battle stopped and the team went forward. "Let's get Garneau, before they send the big guns" Shepherd said.

"I feel sorry for the civilians, they must be terrified…" Tali said. They got to the door and saw they were claw marks and distortions on the door, the civilian were lucky that they came…the door was close to being forced open. They find themselves in the reception room with T-GES Mineral Works employees hanging out, oblivious to the Reaper party that you and your team just cleaned out.

"Something's not right, they seem too calm considering…" Kolyat said.

"Yeah, it's kinda creepy…" As they walked in the people stopped their conversation and stared at the team, their eyes following them. "Okay, really creepy…"

"Reception desk, Wayne, hopefully they'll be a lot more friendlier"

"You and me both" Shepherd and team went up to the reception desk. "I'm Commander Shepherd of the Alliance, and I don't know of you've noticed, but you had reaper troops at your front door"

The receptionists blinked at them. They had cold, blank expressions on their faces. "Are they still there?"

"No, we killed them for now"

"I see. That will be all"

"I don't think you get it, they'll be coming back soon enough" The guards just ignored them and went back to work. "Hello?" Kolyat went and pressed the service button.

"Yes, welcome to T-GES Mineral Works. How can we help you?"

"Yes. For the tour, please sign in"

"You don't seem worried about those reapers. Anything we should know?"

"T-GES Minerals Works is a small to mid-level supplier of tungsten to the galaxy"

"That's not what I meant"

"Are you familiar with the uses of tungsten?"

"Snap out of it, man! I'm here to find a man named Garneau, his last communication was here" Shepherd said. "He would have arrived in the last couple of weeks, if he's here, I need to see him"

"We have no Dr. Garneau…"

"Do you need to see a doctor?"

Shepherd sighed. "Look, I'll just look around" That caught the guards attention.

"No, the access elevator is broken" Tali and Kolyat saw a man walking away from the elevator. "And now…we are done. Step away"

"Step away…you don't belong here…" Shepherd felt Tali's hand on his shoulder.

"Something's not right, come on"

"Yeah, I know, let's look around…carefully"


	46. Chapter 38: Leviathan pt2

**Chapter 38: Leviathan pt2**

_**T-GES Mineral Works**_

Tali was on a terminal to fix the elevator, while Shepherd and Kolyat were watching for surprises. The mine was eerie, to say the least, the people were ignoring their presence, going on their business, despite the fact reaper troops had this place surrounded.

"Rookie, how are you doing with the terminal?" Shepherd asked.

"That bosh'tet did a number on this, but I should be able to fix the elevator" Tali said. Tali went to a repair drone at the side to help with the repairs. The drone was a huge help in restoring some of the systems, while the drone was finishing up Tali looked back at Shepherd and Kolyat. "Any change in our friends?"

"No, it's strange the way they act is like indoctrination" Kolyat said. "But the reapers just came here…"

"I know, EDI thought the same thing with Hadley, but before we left we did a scan, no trace of a reaper artifact"

"Wayne, didn't you say Dr. Bryson's lab had a remnant of Sovereign?" Tali asked.

"There was an energy field we were totally safe" Shepherd said. "My best guess? It's Leviathan…"

"Scary…" Tali said. Her omni-tool beeped, the repairs were done and the drone disappeared. "Okay, the elevator should open now" She pressed the button on the terminal and the door opened, the team went into the elevator. "Wayne, take a look at this, a log I found while trying to fix the elevator"

Shepherd took a look, on it was an Alex Garneau, and that he was there last week. "But why lie about it?" Kolyat asked.

"No idea, keep your eye's peeled, this doesn't smell right" The elevator stopped and the team walked into the mineral lab it was the same as the last, people in some sort of trance. They all looked at the team coldly before going back to their business. Something caught Kolyat's eye and he went to a table at his side. He picked up the datapad and blinked in confusion. Shepherd and Tali came up behind them. "Anything interesting, kid?"

"Yes data on the evolutionary implication of human biotics…"

"That's odd, why's a mining facility studying human biotics?" Tali asked.

Shepherd frowns. "Don't know, but I know I don't like it…" he said. "Let's search the place more" The team explored more of the area, they could overhear the miners talking about experiments that they were doing, although they had a sinking suspicion that it had nothing to do with mining. Shepherd went to another reception desk hoping for someone normal, but before he got a word in the desk worker closed the desk. They went into another area, it looked like a lab for researching the tungsten. The people inside was looking at a halo of the milky way galaxy, as the team got in, the people stopped what they were doing and looked at them.

"Turn back. You don't belong here"

"Yeah, getting that feeling…" Shepherd said warily.

"Funny how they seemed to do everything but mining" Tali said.

"Yeah…" Shepherd then saw something that caught his eye, a data pad on the floor. He picked it up and activated it.

"Attention. Com system offline. This message is not sent" The data pad then switches to a man's voice.

"_Bryson, it's Garneau, I'm in trouble, have to go into hiding" he said nervously. "Hurry come get me…this is big, I've found another one of those artifacts. They may be the key to defeating the reapers, but…" Then there was a loud sound._

"_Shit! I got to go, it's in the mines, and here is the nav-point. That's where it will be" Garneau said. "If something happens, I've attached a passcode that will hack any terminal"_

"_Bryson, something feels wrong here, please hurry…"_

"Rookie?"

"Got it, I think I saw a master console in the area we were in" Shepherd and Kolyat nodded and went back to the previous room. Tali went work in punching in the Garneau's passcode. "We're in" An image appeared on the screen, a recording from external cameras showed a Kodiak flying into the facility. Garneau got out of the shuttle and shook hands with an asari employee, in fact according to Tali Garneau had full access at one point. What could have changed in such a short time?

"Tali, what's that?" Kolyat asked. He pointed to a file that was uploaded on the side. Tali opened the file.

"It's an incident report, it says unknown male in altercation in the mines"

"So Garneau was just attacked out of the blue?"

"No, more like they attacked because he was close to something" Shepherd said. "Rooke, where is he?"

"Med bay, from the looks of it, but it's locked unless you have an ID number" She said. Tali typed in the console. "Which I now have"

Shepherd nodded. "Alright, let's get our man"

_**Med Bay (T-GES Mineral Works)**_

The team went to the back to the med-bay, surprisingly despite the facility attacking Garneau they were able to get in with no opposition. Once they were in, the team was hit was a sickening smell that threatened to overwhelm them. "The hell is that smell?" Shepherd asked gagging.

"Ugh, I found the source" Kolyat said sick. The tables were full of bodies, human, asari, and turian. Some were covered up, and some were without sheet. All was naked and cut into, like they were being operation on but the cuts were sloppy and uneven. They had worked on them and then just stopped not even bothering to sew them back up. The ones closest to the door was fresh but the further went in they saw bodies torn apart by decay. The whole scene was disturbing to them. "What in the world happened here?"

"I think we can blame our friends for that… I hope we don't find Garneau like this" Tali said. A voice spoke up.

"If you are looking for Garneau, you have found him…" The team looked back. "I am him" He was in the patient room, but they couldn't see his features, because of the darkness.

"I'm Shepherd of the Alliance" he said. "You need medical assistance? You look like shit"

"I am…fine, just trapped…"

"What happened here? The people here are non-responsive" Kolyat said.

"I was doing my research…until the incident"

"We know they attacked you" Tali said.

"It's true, but aside from my confinement, I'm fine" Garneau said.

"I need information, Bryson's research led to you" Shepherd said.

Garneau looked at him. "Bryson sent you?"

Shepherd shook his head. "He's dead…killed by his assistant"

"I see"

"Strange he doesn't seem shocked by this" Kolyat whispered.

"I know…I don't like this" Tali said. "We should be careful…"

"Tell me everything about Leviathan" Shepherd said. "Bryson thinks it kills reapers"

"It's a myth, nothing more, nothing less"

"What about these artifacts? You said they can turn the tide in this war" Kolyat said.

"I did? No"

"Yes you did, doctor" Shepherd said. "The reapers are breathing down our necks; we'll break you out, grab the artifact and go"

"Reapers, The darkness must not be breached" Garneau muttered.

"Excuse me?" Garneau then shot up and pounded on the glass, which made the team jump back, his eyes went back in his head and a new voice came out.

"WHY DO YOU PURSUE ME?"

"Doctor?" Garneau then pounded on the glass, cracking it, his face twisted with rage.

"LEAVE THE ARTIFACT; YOU WILL NOT TAKE WHAT'S MINE!"

"I don't think that's Garneau, Wayne…" Tali said.

Shepherd frowned. "You killed a reaper, I need your help"

"YOUR EFFORTS ARE FUTILE, NONE CAN STOP THE HARVEST" he said. "ONLY DEATH AWAITS!" The force from this new creature was too strong and the glass shattered, forcing the team to cover themselves, they then heard the sound of running, it was Garneau. Shepherd ran after him, but Garneau closed the door…blocking his way. Shepherd opened his omni-tool and forced the door to open only to find a second locked door. Kolyat and Tali caught up with Shepherd. The lights then went off.

"Someone's cut the power…" Tali bypassed and the door.

"There he is!" The team saw Garneau heading for the Mining Sector and ran after him.

"LEAVE THIS PLACE!"

"Wait!" The door closed. "Rookie?"

Tali tried to open it, but she got error messages. "No good"

"We have to find that artifact, before he does"

"Shepherd, Tali, an emergency chute we can get to the mines from here!" Kolyat said. The team climbed the ladder and made it to the upper levels. They found themselves back outside, full of ladder and obstacles that would slow them down. The team slid down the ladder.

"Garneau's notes gave us a new nav-point to the artifact" Tali said. "It's at the next tram station" They heard a growl from above and saw a Harvester dropping husks in front of them. They rushed them; Shepherd pushed two of them back with his throw field. Tali and Kolyat blasted them with their guns. As soon as the husks were dead, more worm-necks appeared heading for Garneau's location.

"Double time people! We can't let Garneau or the reapers get that artifact!" Shepherd ordered. The team made their way to the other side and more husks intercepted the team. Shepherd tossed them off the ledge, one of them latched on to Shepherd clawing at his face. Shepherd struggled to get off of him, he saw a wall and rammed into it forcing the Husk off the spectre. He then took out his shotgun and shot it point-blank. Tali summoned her defense drone shocking any husk that got close to her while Kolyat got to cover and gave the quarian sniper support. When they were dead, Tali noticed a lone figure running across the top of the refinery.

"I see him!" Several blasts headed towards Tali. "Keelah!" She got to cover.

"Rookie, you alright?"

"Yeah, just dodged some ravager fire" Shepherd nodded and took out his Hydra and fired on the ravager the missiles took out the Cannibal and Marauders around it. Kolyat threw his homing grenades and killed the husks just behind the ravager. A grenade landed at their location, and the team moved to new cover. To their left, were marauders on top of the refinery shot at them, Tali summoned Chatikka to draw their fire. When their shields were drained, Kolyat turned their heads into a puddle with his Shredder-enhanced sniper rifle. More reapers troops were deployed, heading for their location.

"Get to higher ground!" The team got up to the ledge, where Kolyat was able do more damage to the reaper troops he took down the two canibals with headshots. Tali summoned Chattika to distract the second ravager while Shepherd fired another Hydra missile at the rachni husk. They then heard growls from their side and saw Husks climbing up to attack. Tali summoned her defense drone and shot the husks.

"Kolyat, lock them down!" The young drell nodded and fired off some recon mines that then exploded and sent the husks flying. They then heard an unholy screech that gave Shepherd chills down the spectre spine. "You guys here that?"

"Yeah…" A huge biotic blast then flew towards them and blew them back. When they got back up, the screech got louder, and the team looked down.

"Keelah…is that?"

Shepherd frowned. "Yeah, an asari husk, two of them" The husk then disappeared and reappear on their side. "Shit, get away from them, do let them get near!" Tali summoned her drone to distract the asari husk from attacking however the husk just bushed passed like it wasn't there. Kolyat detonated his recon mine, to stun the other asari husk but it shrugged it off and blasted him with biotic blast. Kolyat ran but the blast kept following him until he rolled into cover. Shepherd overloaded their barriers with his overload but it wasn't enough to slow them down. The asari just kept shifting all over the place and the team kept trying to get distance, but the ledges and obstacles made it a challenge. Tali dodged the oncoming biotic blast, but rolled in front of the other husk. The Quarian reacted too slowly and took a claw hard to the side, she held her side as reddish-blue blood dripped down her sides. The other husk was coming in from behind her until Shepherd blasted the first husk with his Venom Shotgun. Kolyat tossed a few homing grenades at the second asari husk and ran to get Tali to safety.

"Shepherd, I got Tali…you got a clear shot" Shepherd nodded and took out his Hydra, before the husks were ready to shift the spectre pulled the trigger. The storm of mini missile torn them apart with each impact, when the smoke cleared the only thing they could hear was the last scream of the banshee. Shepherd put his heavy weapon and went to Tali. "Rookie you okay?"

Tali winced at the pain on her side "Yeah, the section sealed before it could get infected…"

"We're not taking any chances, let's patch you up"


	47. Chapter 39: Leviathan pt3

**Chapter 39: Leviathan pt3**

After the nasty fight, Shepherd sat Tali down to patch Tali up. Kolyat went to the door to open it, but the lights went off and an alarm sounded. Kolyat frowned. "Garneau has cut the power, I'm going to restart the generator" Shepherd nodded and the drell went to the generator. He looked at Tali.

"Okay let's look at that wound" Shepherd said.

Tali sighed. "Wayne, I'll be fine, it doesn't hurt that much" Shepherd raised a brow and gently poked at her left side, the quarian winced in pain.

"Doesn't hurt that much huh?" Shepherd said. Tali sighed, once Shepherd got going it almost impossible to argue with the man. She released the seals and saw four deep claw marks from the banshee. Her wounds had stopped bleeding and all she was left with was an ugly bruise on her side, it was definitely going to scar when it healed fully. Shepherd got out a syringe of medi-gel and applied it directly to the wound; Tali cringed in discomfort from the coldness of the gel and the faint sting of her wound. Luckily the effect didn't last too long; she sealed the section of her suit. Shepherd took her hand and pulled her up.

"You worry too much…" She said softly.

Shepherd smirked and wrapped his arms around her waist. "Can't help it, it's called being a good boyfriend" Tali smiled and they heard a chuckle. Shepherd turned his head, Kolyat returned to them after restarting the generator. The spectre raised a brow. "Something I said, kid?"

"Nothing, you just remind me my parents" Kolyat said. "Mother would always get on Dad about his wounds from his work, reminded me of happier days" Kolyat then grew silent, the young drell was thinking about his father. So much had happen, that he didn't have enough time to mourn his father. He then felt a gentle hand on his shoulder.

"Kolyat, are you okay?" Tali asked concerned.

"I'm fine, Miss Zorah" Kolyat said. He opened the door to the mines and the team got out their weapons out. Once in they saw Garneau in front of a spherical object that had a silver-bluish glow. It looked like the artifact in Bryson's lab. Garneau was scurrying backwards from the dozens of husks approaching him, although the husks seemed more drawn to the artifact than the man before them.

"THE DARKNESS CAN'T BE BREACHED!"

"The husks seem to be drawn to the artifact" Tali said. She and Kolyat fired at the husks while Shepherd took aim at the artifact. Before he could pull the trigger, Garneau got in his line of fire.

"Move! I got a clear shot!" Garneau got out a trigger for a bomb, Shepherd eyes widen. "Garneau, don't do it!"

"TURN BACK!" He pressed the button, Shepherd raised a barrier to cover the whole team and the artifact exploded, causing husks and Garneau to fly. Luckily, the team was unharmed and Shepherd lowered the barrier. When the smoke cleared, all that remained of the artifact was the burnt stand the artifact stood on.

"What was that about?" Tali asked.

Shepherd walked to the artifact, after all that work they were now at a dead-end. "Don't know all I know is we're back at square one" Tali saw Kolyat checking the body of human man in a red and white lab uniform. The young drell gave her a data pad that was on his person.

"Oh, Keelah…Wayne, come here" Shepherd came to Tali's side, the quarian looked disturbed. Tali handed Shepherd the data pad and he took a look. Shepherd frowned; the man they met in the med bay was not Garneau but the dead man lying before them. The man they met was a decoy controlled by Leviathan to throw anybody looking for it off the trail. In fact the whole colony was taken over by Leviathan; anyone that went looking for the reaper killer was killed by the miners. This Leviathan sounded less like a reaper killer and more like a reaper.

Shepherd sighed. "Any more happy news?"

"Encrypted data and a personal log with the eight missed calls from a Dr. Ann Bryson"

Shepherd looked at her. "Bryson?" The sound of a door opened, the team turned around to see a group of miners walking in to the room. They fully expected to be attacked like Garneau before them, but instead the miners looked around. They looked dazed, like they just awoken from a deep sleep. One of the miners looked them,

"Who…who are you? What are you doing here?" A woman asked.

Kolyat and Tali at each other while Shepherd walked forward. "I'm Commander Shepherd, are you all right?"

The woman groaned, trying to keep her balance. "I…I think so. I feel strange, but I'm alright…"

Shepherd pointed to the dead Garneau "Did you recognize this man?"

The asari spoke up and shook her head. "No, I never seen him before in my life"

"Someone here killed him" Shepherd said. That woke the miners up, and they looked at each other nervously. Shepherd frowned; they had no memories of even meeting Garneau despite having video saying differently. If this was indoctrination, then it was the strangest indoctrination he had ever seen. For one thing, it seemed like were back in their right minds even though they were heavily under Leviathan's influence. "What happened here? What happened to you?"

"Not really, I just remember it being cold…and dark, like death itself"

A man spoke up. "I felt that exact feeling also…."

"Just like Hadley…" Tali whispered.

"And that artifact? Know where it came from?"

"Out of the mine, head office was supposed to send someone to investigate, and ….after that nothing…"

Shepherd nodded and raised his com. "Cortez, what's your situation? How's the shuttle?"

"No damage to the shuttle, but strangest thing, reaper troops hightailed it out of there" Cortez said. "What happened down there?"

"A dead-end for now…" A man spoke up.

"Excuse me, sir, but what are you taking about?" he asked. "What's a reaper?" Kolyat and Tali looked at each other, Shepherd blinked at him, the reapers was huge news, and how could anyone not know about the machines causing the end of civilization was beyond them. "What?"

Shepherd frowned. "What year do you think it is?"

"2176, why?"

"The year is 2186, you've been here for ten years" Kolyat said. The miners looked at the team with wide eyes.

"W-what?"

"Let's get these people ready for evac and temporary quarantine" The team walked away from the distraught miners.

"Keelah, to lose ten years of their lives, not even the reapers did that" she said. "When they get up to speed…"

"Yeah, it's going to be a hell of a wake-up call"

_**The Normandy**_

Hours later the Normandy was docked at the Citadel, Shepherd went to the med bay to check up on Tali. The quarian was just done with her check-up with Dr. Chakwas, luckily she wasn't going to get an infection due to Shepherd tending to Tali's wound. Dr. Chakwas told him that Tali would be able to go on another mission with him. Shepherd looked at Tali who gave him an assuring nod. "Get some rest first, then we'll talk" Shepherd said.

"Deal, so how are the miners?" Tali asked.

Shepherd sighed; the miners were getting check for indoctrination. To say they were shocked at the state of the galaxy was an understatement. So far only half of them had been checked out and were clean, this was a good sign it means that indoctrination from Leviathan was possibly not permanent. "It's promising but the miners are going to stay a little long to make sure there aren't surprises"

"Well that's good at least" Tali said. "So what now?"

"We go back to Bryson's lab, that artifact we found is in the mines is in the lab, so I'll go and analyze it" Tali gave him a look, she was worried that what happened to the miner could happen to him. "Don't worry I'll be careful, EDI's going with me"

"And what about Dr. Ann Bryson?"

"There's probably info on her at the lab" Shepherd then gotten sad. "I'm sorry…"

Tali looked at him, and tilted her head. "What for?"

"I know you want to see your people on the Migrant Fleet…" Before he could finish, Tali put her finger on his lips.

"Don't be, things have been crazy lately and plus I know this is important" She said. "I know wherever my people are, they are safe, so don't worry so much"

Shepherd kissed her forehead. "Thanks rookie, when this whole thing is done, we'll go see them"

_**Bryson's Lab**_

Shepherd's car landed outside the lab and Shepherd and EDI got out. Inside the lab they saw the cause of all this trouble. While it could only affect only a small area, that was enough to be worried about a reaper artifact in the middle of the Citadel. While on the way back to the Citadel, EDI was hard at work on decipher Garneau's notes and found that he had found a way to block the artifact's mind affecting properties. "EDI, shut it down" EDI nodded and activated her omni-tool and the console indicator near her went from red to green. Shepherd went over and pressed the button and a shield formed around the artifact. The silver-blue glow of the artifact disappeared.

Shepherd sighed. "Amazing something like this has been under our nose this whole time" he said. "Why aren't we affected, like Hadley and the miners were?"

"Perhaps the amount of time near the artifact is key" EDI said. "After certain duration, Leviathan takes control"

"Which leaves the question, is Leviathan friend or foe?"

"Hard to know without meeting it" She said. "However, this artifact is the link to finding Leviathan"

"Agreed" Shepherd and EDI searched the lab for clues, in the second room of the lab, they looked the Project Information terminal. According to this, Garneau was working on a project when he died. EDI reveals that it was Project Basilisk, but couldn't find more information because Hadley wiped the information from the servers and backups before he killed Bryson. "Another dead-end?"

The AI shook her head. "No, Hadley didn't erase everything there's a message from Dr. Bryson's daughter, according to records she worked with her father" EDI said. She then opened it and a halo of a young woman, in her mid-twenties appeared.

"_I'm at the dig sight on Namakil in the Pylos Nebula, Project Scrab paid off" she said. "I got another artifact like the one Garneau found; he may be on to something, with the mind control thing"_

"_You need to shield the one in your office, I tried to warn Garneau, but I can't get through" Ann said. "We got reaper scouts coming in towards the main site. I'm heading to the secondary base to grab what research I can"_ The image faded.

"That's not good, I think we find out why the Reapers left Mahavid, they were going after her" Shepherd said. "And they got a head start, let's get back to the Normandy" They left the lab.

_An arid but habitable planet, Namakli was briefly considered by the Pyrena Corporation, a consortium of asari colonists and socialized vorcha laborers. After an economic downturn, however, many asari left the planet, and the vorcha population kept growing to the point where they bred faster than could be educated. Soon they turned violent and uncontrollable, and the colonies essentially self-destructed._

_Today, Namakli is a wasteland with little population, but vorcha packs are scattered across the deserts. Settlers frequently run into these packs, discouraging recolonization. The lack of complex biota and scarcity of profitable metals drove the last few proverbial nails into Namakli's coffin: no one has stepped forth in the past few years with the will, the funding, or the firepower to establish a permanent colony.-Codex_

"So this dig site is under attacked?" Tali asked.

"Yeah, EDI can explain more"

"This is the main site of a series of excavations established under Dr. Garret Bryson. Staff records confirm the project lead is his daughter, Ann" she said. "She has uncovered another artifact linked to Leviathan"

"And because of that, she's a target"

"So we're playing catch-up…" Kolyat said.

Shepherd nodded. "So no mistakes on this one, we lose her, we lose our lead" he said. "Cortez?"

"Nothing so far…oh shit!"

"What is it?"

"The dig site is a war-zone, and I'm getting at least a dozen Harvesters in the air" Cortez said. "It's bad…"

"Okay, take us in, and we'll do the rest" Shepherd said.

"Aye-Aye!"


	48. Chapter 40: Leviathan pt4

**Chapter 40: Leviathan pt4**

The Kodiak made its way to the compound dodging harvester fire along the way. It was chaos as the air was filled with Harvester dropping troops to get at Dr. Bryson and her team. The shuttle shook as two harvesters pursued them; the team almost fell when Cortez did some crazy maneuvers to shake them off. Since it was too hot to land at Bryson's location, Cortez deployed the team on to the lower deck near Bryson's location. As soon as they got out of the Shuttle, Cortez left to break away from the two harvesters. Shepherd's com opened. "Hello, this Dr. Ann Bryson! We are under attacked!"

"These is Commander Shepherd of the Alliance, stay there and lock the doors, we'll come and get you"

"Okay, but hurry!" As the connection closed, a hail of fire came from above almost causing the team to fall. Shepherd looked up and saw The Harvesters circling overhead will take shots at the team.

"Get to cover!" The team moved, to the next area, but the Harvester kept firing, causing to the building they were in to shake. They used any available cover when possible, dashing from spot to spot even when on the move. However the torrent of fire from the worm-neck was taking its toll on the platform they were on. "Shit, move it, this thing is coming down!" The team ran forward and into the next build in front of them as the platform fell. The Harvester no longer seeing the team joined the other worm-necks to make sure no one escape. As the team caught their breath in the building, the com opened.

"Hello, is anyone there?"

"Shepherd here, things was sticky for us, where are you?"

"Above you, you should take the elevator on the far side" Bryson said.

"Copy that, we're on our way" The team went forward towards the next building, but a blast from one of the Harvester hit the next building causing it to fall. Luckily there was an opening just ahead and the jumped on the fallen building and ran to the other side. The husks met them on the other side and rushed the team, and Shepherd pushed them off the ledge with his throw field. The area shook as the Harvester fired another shot towards them; the team ran across using the falling buildings as passageways. Shepherd's com opened.

"Commander, they're swarming everywhere up here!"

"Can you find a place to hide?" Shepherd asked.

"I'll try" The team dropped down to stable platform below where the saw a Cannibal feeding on the corpse of one of Bryson's colleagues. Shepherd shot them and the team went to cover as a couple of Cannibals approached. The Cannibals took cover in the building ahead, Shepherd lifted them with a Singularity field and knocked them down with a warp field. Tali flanked them from behind with Chatikkia in tow. Kolyat gave the quarian sniper support, taking down the Cannibal that just dropped to her side. After the Cannibals died, the team went over to the other side; Shepherd was about get to the stairway, until a Harvester smashed through the stairs, cutting off their path.

"Shit!

"Which way now?" Tali asked.

Kolyat pointed to the ladder beside them. Shepherd was the first go up then Tali and Kolyat was last. When Shepherd got up to the roof he was ambushed by a lone husk, it quickly grabbed him and Shepherd struggled to get it off. The husk screeched as it clawed at the spectre's face.

"Wayne!" Shepherd then overpowered the husk, grabbed the husk's neck and crushed it and threw it off the roof. "Are you okay?"

"Shepherd wiped the blood from his face. "Yeah, watch your back, expect ambushes" The team jumped over to the ledge.

"Shepherd, a bridge" Kolyat said. "We use it to get across"

"Hopefully, the bridge is not destroyed." The team made it over to the controls. "Wayne, we're in luck, the bridge is functional" she said. "Some of the wires are shorted, but shouldn't take long"

Shepherd nodded. A harvester made another drop. "Get to work, Rookie, we got company" Several husks came out and charged at the team. Kolyat launched several recon mines on the ground and husks set them off causing them fly off the ridge. Tali gave a status report on the control, it was fixed and she raised the bridge up, however it was slow. A feral scream pierced the sky, it was an asari husk, or banshee as Shepherd called them. The banshee shifted, trying to get close to them, Tali and Shepherd drained the banshee of it's barrier leaving it with its armor. The banshee screamed in anger, and threw out a slow but powerful biotic blast at the team. The console behind them beeped.

"Bridge is up, we can go!" Shepherd ordered Tali and Kolyat to go ahead, leaving the spectre with the banshee. He took out his Blackstorm Projector and charged it.

"Choke on this, you bitch!" Shepherd said. The Projector fired and the banshee screamed as she was being sucked in by the vacuum. The vacuum exploded and the banshee's screams were silenced, Shepherd joined Tali and Kolyat. They went down the building and up a crushed building turned ramp to the elevator. Shepherd pressed the button and the elevator came down, only to get stuck by debris. "Fuck!" Shepherd opened his com. "Ann, elevators blocked, is there another way in?"

"There's an access port above, but you'll have to climb it"

"Copy that" The team went up, another drop revealing Cannibals and Ravagers. The Cannibals threw a grenade at the team, causing them to scatter. Tali distracted the rachni-husk with her drones, and Kolyat killed it with his rifle. Shepherd froze some of the Cannibals and shot them with his pistol. When they were dead, more husks dropped in, Shepherd threw two of them of the ledge while Tali blasted the remaining ones with her shotgun. The team went ahead and climbed some more, as they closer the fighting only became more intense. Several Cannibals dropped in front of them while the Harvesters fire at their location, the fighting was taking its toll on the building they were in. Shepherd took control of one of the cannibals and Tali summoned Chatikkia to distract the others, the controlled cannibal opened fired on the Harvester. While they were distracted the team ran ahead to the second elevator. As they climbed up, they saw the harvester fire on the building and it fell with the cannibals inside. They met with the doctor, and two dead men.

"What happened?"

"They tried to run, I told them not to, but they wanted to help the others" Bryson said. "Where did everyone go?"

"They're all dead, you're the only one left" Shepherd said. "You can mourn later, I need you come with me"

"Okay, of course" Shepherd gave the signal and Tali and Kolyat went ahead, with Shepherd and Bryson close behind. "I…was at another dig site when they attacked, what's happening?" Tali spoke up.

"Wayne! Look!" Shepherd looked at the walls; the image above looked like a reaper. There was also a painting of people below the reaper-like creature, from the way they looked they looked like they were worshiping the creature…or groveling in fear. Since landing, they had seen a bunch of these murals on the wall, but had been busy fighting the reaper troops to have noticed. Now that they had some time to take a breath and look around, the murals unnerved the team…who could worship reapers? Then again it may not be a reaper, they found such things to be disgusting…they know this from the Heretic geth. "What does it mean?"

Shepherd looked at Bryson. "Is that Leviathan?"

"Yes…yes, at least I think so, it's old much older than my father thought" she said. "Under the painting, the natives, as if they were under its power"

"Clearly a reaper, but acting alone"

"What? I always thought they couldn't act alone" Kolyat said.

"The reapers are different, they don't seem to work on a network like the geth do" Tali said. "Doctor, didn't you say you found something, another artifact?"

Bryson nodded. "Yes, it's just ahead" The team ran forward. "It may seem strange, but it affects people, their behavior, though I've only had a short time to study it"

"We know, we saw it first hand, anything else?"

"Not much, but I did learn something, about the energy it generates" They then heard growling.

"Get down!' They saw a marauder being held up by an energy field being emitted by the artifact. "What the hell are they doing?"

"It looks they're absorbing the energy…" Tali said.

"They've activated it somehow. I've never managed anything…anything…."

"Doctor?" Bryson started to walk forward, her eyes cold.

"They've learned too much, the darkness must not be breached…" Shepherd tries to hold her back.

"Shepherd!"

"Take it out!" Tali nodded and shot the artifact and it shattered. It released a wave of energy that made the Marauders fall back of their feet. Bryson fell to her knees, and shook her head…she was back to her senses just like the miners. "You okay? Cortez, we have Ann Bryson, we need evac!"

"On my way!"

"Copy that, when you see the shuttle, you run and you don't look back!"

"Okay" Bryson said. The team ran for cover and the reaper's troops came in force. Shepherd lifted them up with his Singularity field and shut them down with his warp field. Kolyat shot three Cannibals in the head, and killed two marauders with a homing grenade. Tali summoned her drones to cover the team's flank and then sabotaged the Cannibals and Marauder's weapons. As they were fighting off the smaller troopers, a Harvester landed on the extraction point.

"Commander, you need to get rid of that worm-neck, I can't land until you do!" Cortez said.

"On it Cortez" Shepherd activated his tech armor. "Keep the small fries off me; I need to take care of that Harvester." Kolyat and Tali nodded and got to work.

Kolyat sent out some recon mine, and gave Shepherd sniper support. Tali ordered her defense drone to go with Shepherd, and killed any husk in the way with her pistol. Shepherd got a good spot with lots of cover, as the worm-neck fired on Shepherd, wiping out its allies in the process. He then took out his Hydra and aimed and fired on the Harvester, while the team focused on the lesser troops. One final missile hit the Harvester, making it go critical and explode. After a while, the shuttle came in.

"Get in, hurry!"

"Right, Bryson you first, we'll cover you!" Shepherd said. Bryson made a run for the shuttle, while the team gave her covering fire. The reaper's reinforcements came in fast. When Bryson made it on, the team got in. "Go, go, go!" Cortez pressed the buttons and the shuttle flew off at top speed for the Normandy.

"You okay?"

"I…I think so…what happened?"

"You were under the control of the artifact; we had to destroy it, to free you"

Bryson nodded. "I see, thank you" she said. "To think, Leviathan had that much influence over me from using the artifact as a medium"

"The reapers seemed interested in it as we were" Shepherd said.

"From the looks of it, the reaper husks were absorbing something from it" Bryson said. "It could be the energy, but I'm not too sure…"

"Bryson, we'll figure it out, but first…I have some bad news"

Bryson looked at him. "What bad news…?"

Shepherd sighed. "Your father's dead…"

"W-what?"

"Leviathan took control of his assistant and had him kill your father" he said. "We couldn't save him in time…"

"I can't believe this…."

"We need to find out what's behind this, and you're the only one who can help us" Shepherd said. "Ann?"

"I… want to see his office…"

"I'll arrange for transport, and meet you there"

_**The Normandy**_

Shepherd was in the lounge tired from the day's events, he then heard the door open. It was James.

"Vega, come in"

"You wanted to see me, Loco?"

"Yeah, next time we're on the Citadel, I want you to come with me" Shepherd said.

"What is it?" James asked. "Are we expecting trouble?"

"Yeah, you can say that" Shepherd said. "Bryson, called me, came up with a crazy plan, a plan that I don't like…"

"She plans on getting into contact with Leviathan directly" he said.

James frowned. "I'll be ready…"

_**Two Chapters left until Leviathan is revealed! Next Time! Review and Comment!**_


	49. Chapter 41: Leviathan pt5

**Chapter 41: Leviathan pt.5**

_**Bryson's lab (Citadel)**_

The shuttle was flying to Bryson's lab, after Shepherd briefed James on Bryson's plan he agreed to help although he wasn't so sure about the doctor plugging herself up to Leviathan especially if Leviathan turns out to be a reaper. He hoped Shepherd had a plan in case the situation got out of hand. The shuttle landed outside the lab and the team got out, they went in to the lab to find it empty, Bryson was supposed to meet them at the door. They heard the sound of crying upstairs, Shepherd ordered EDI and James to sit tight and went upstairs. Bryson was on the bed quietly crying while looking at a halo of her and her father. Shepherd could sympathize; losing family was never easy for anyone.

"Bryson?"

She wiped her eyes. "Oh Commander, yes, I'm so sorry. Just…this is hard…" Bryson choked.

"I understand, we can do this later"

Bryson shook her head and got off the bed. "I'm okay, we need to do this" she said. "It's just….seeing this again….He was obsessed. Crazy even"

"I didn't get to know him…"

Bryson sighed. "Sometimes I felt the same way. He was a great man, pioneer, but he could be distant, sometimes I felt like an inconvenience to him growing up"

The way she talked about her father was eerily similar to how Tali talked about Rael. If time wasn't of the essence, he would have no doubt the two women would something to talk about. Shepherd snapped back to reality. "Sounds like someone I know…" Shepherd said. "Were you angry at him?"

"I was, or I guess I still am, I know his job was important, but I wished sometimes he was less a scientist and more a father" Bryson said. "But when he discovered something new, he was full of stories, the passion he felt about his work was contagious, and that's why I signed on for his work" Bryson looked at Shepherd with determined eyes. "I need to know what's on the other side of that artifact, what he died for"

"But are you sure about this, using the artifact?"

"I am" She walked downstairs. "Who are they?"

"This is EDI, she'll be tracking the signal, with you plugged in and this is Lt. James Vega he's here for support"

"Don't worry chica; we'll make sure you get through this"

"Thank you" Before going to the next room, Bryson was in the lab getting her father's work set up. She talked about how Shepherd's claim of the reapers validated years of her father's work. When the Sovereign's remains arrived it was in energy field, but even then the team had psych evaluations to make sure they weren't indoctrinated. Next she talked about how they used the rachni to understand Leviathan, believing how Leviathan control its victims was similar to how the rachni communicate with each other. Due to this, Bryson's team theorized the artifact acted like receiver, meaning the connection only worked if Leviathan took control of someone. It was a good plan, using the creature's ability against itself although the team was worried what could happen to Bryson. They walked into the room with the artifact; Bryson took a deep breath and sat down. Shepherd took his place on her side.

"Vega, get ready" James nodded and took the other side. "EDI?"

"Energy signal locked in. Waiting for activation" she said.

"I'm ready, lower the shield…" Bryson said.

"Vega" James pressed the button and the containment shield went down.

"Artifact online" EDI said. The artifact started to glow an eerie blue and Bryson didn't feel anything at first but then she said felt cold. Shepherd and James braced themselves for Leviathan's 'greeting'.

"EDI?"

"No trace yet" Bryson gasped then started to convulse, and Shepherd and James was trying their hardest to keep control. Leviathan was coming through and it was pissed, the artifacts didn't just take control…it made their victims stronger which were why the Marauders were absorbing the energy on Namakil. Bryson convulsions became stronger and she almost threw James off of her.

"Holy hell!" James said.

"EDI?!" Shepherd asked struggling.

"Signal is tracking, stand by….maintaining connection" Bryson's eyes went to the back of her head and then spoke up, or rather Leviathan spoke up.

"TURN BACK. THE DARKNESS CANNOT BE BREACHED"

"Dios! I'm losing her!"

"Just hang on!" Shepherd said.

"Maintain connection" EDI said.

"Listen to me, I found you and the reapers are right behind me" Shepherd said. "You could be the thing we need to stop them"

Bryson's head snapped to her right, and she gave a look of cold rage at Shepherd. "YOU BROUGHT THEM. YOU ARE A THREAT!"

Shepherd frowned. "So are you, but I've seen what you can do. The war needs you"

"IGNORANT PRIMATIVE, THERE IS NO WAR ONLY THE HARVEST"

"Harvest?"

"YOU CHANGE NOTHING, THE CYCLE WILL CONTINUE!"

EDI spoke up. "Shepherd, we have partial lock, maintain connection to narrow the search"

"That's enough, Vega, lower the shield" James nodded and pressed the button and the shield went down. Bryson stopped shaking, and tried to catch her breath. She was back to normal, Leviathan was gone. Shepherd kneeled down; the doctor held her head being controlled took a lot out of her.

"Bryson, you okay?"

"Y…Yeah…I think so…"

"EDI? Results?" Shepherd asked.

"We found them, coordinates sent to the Normandy"

"Commander, I sensed something else while I was under, anger" Bryson said. "I think it wants to kill you" She then almost collapsed and James caught her.

"Easy there, chica…" he said. "She needs help"

Shepherd nodded and the team left to get Bryson some medical help. The team stayed for a while to check up on the doctor, to their relief she was just fatigued and would be released after she got some rest. This was good, she didn't need to join her father, with that out-of-the-way the team went back to the Normandy, and it was time to find Leviathan.

_2181 Despoina was only spotted recently by human space probes, and no records indicate it has been explored since. Scans indicate it is covered in an ocean of liquid water and has a nitrogen-oxygen atmosphere. It is highly likely to have at least some photosynthetic life.-Codex_

The Normandy arrived in the Psi Tophet system, and the Kodiak was released to the planet below. The Normandy went behind the moon of the planet and went silent for when the reapers came into the system. Meanwhile, Shepherd and team were in the back of the shuttle getting their weapons ready. "Commander, we found it, probe confirms Leviathan's signal originated here on this planet" Cortez said. "Heard what happened from James, spooky stuff…"

"Makes you wonder what we'll find down there" Garrus said.

"A Reaper-killer that don't want to be found" Tali said.

"That's too damn bad, we're here"

The turian frowned. "Yeah and then what? What if we find it and it does turn out to be a reaper?" Garrus asked. "Do we even want that kind of help?"

"It's not like we're going to be friends with it, it's a resource, nothing more, nothing less"

"I hope you're right, Wayne…"

Cortez spoke up. "Commander, new readings from the probe, it's narrowed down the location, you're not going to like it" Shepherd walked up to the cockpit.

"Try me"

"Ocean, nothing but ocean…" Cortez said. "There's a concentration of structures on the surface, but the signal is coming from below…way below"

"Underwater? A fucking needle in a haystack…"

"The shuttle should be able to reach it" The Kodiak flew towards the structure in the middle of the sea.

"The Kodiak is water-capable?" Tali asked.

"The Kodiak is specced to handle a thousand atmospheres…water included, I just never tried it before"

"A good a time as ever" As the shuttle came close to its destination, it was then rocked hard a blue pulse. Shepherd regained his footing, the alarms on the shuttle were sounding off like crazy. "What the hell was that?"

Cortez worked frantically to regain control. "Some kind of pulse hit us! Systems are shutting down!" he said. "Damn it, brace for impact!" The Kodiak went down and the side of the shuttle hit some tall debris sticking out of the ocean, causing the team to be knocked to the floor. Cortez manages to set the shuttle down at one of the floating wrecks where it slid along the hull until it came to complete stop. Shepherd and team got out; they were dazed, but alive.

"Everyone alright?"

"My suit's intact, maybe a few bruises under it"

"A little sore, but fine" Garrus said.

"Cortez, how's the shuttle?"

"I'm checking now, I'll if I can get the power restored" he said.

"Copy that, we'll look around" The team went exploring the ruined platform; around them were ruined ships, some looked ancient, incredibly ancient.

"Spirits…How many do you think have been stranded here?"

Tali shuddered. "Too many…if the fleet came down here it would be the end of us" she said grimly. "And a pulse did all this?"

"Must be Leviathan's last line of defense, to stop anyone who gets close" Shepherd said. The team turns a corner and saw the artifacts, a bunch of them.

"Keelah, look at them all, those that didn't die from the crash, must had been taken control of by Leviathan"

"Yeah, a good way to keep your existence a secret" They went farther in and saw the rushing winds and water. Garrus shuddered. "That's a lot of water…."

"I take it you're not big fan?" Shepherd asked.

"Most turians aren't, too much flopping around and drowning"

"God forbid, Liara decides to take you to a swimming pool, would be a bummer to miss out on Liara being in skimpy swim suit though" Shepherd said amused.

"Aw dammit, don't give that thought, now I'll have to try it" Garrus said blushing. Tali clear her throat.

"If you boys are quite done…look at those ships" She said. "I recognize a few of them, from historical records…"

"Which mean we weren't the first trying to look for Leviathan…"

"Boss, we got company, up there!" Shepherd and Tali looked up and saw a reaper descending from the sky.

"Shit! They were behind us this whole time" Shepherd growled. "Protect the shuttle!" A drop pod came down and some Cannibals came out to fight. Shepherd and team went to cover. Garrus planted some proxy mines on the floor and Tali summoned her drones to cover them. Shepherd threw some throw fields and knocked some Cannibals into the sea. More reaper reinforcement came out, and was starting to push them back. Shepherd used the artifacts lying around as a makeshift explosive to keep the heat off of them. However, for every five they took down…three more took their place.

"Cortez, the shuttle?"

"Swapping out the parts, Commander! Hang on!" he said. Tali's drone shocked three more husks, before exploding and sending some flying into the air. Some marauders stepped on Garrus' proxy mines and it took out group of husks. Shepherd continued to throw the husks off the barge with his throw field. The cannibals threw grenades at the team, causing them to scramble only to be caught in the open by more husks or marauders. Tali summoned her defense drone that shocked any husk that got close while Garrus overloaded the Marauder's shields and stunned it allies near them. Shepherd threw some lift grenades to thin their numbers.

"Cortez, a little help would be nice!"

"Almost there, Commander!"

"Boss, we got two big one, incoming!" A brute charged towards the team, Shepherd froze the ground and made brute fall, giving the team a chance to fire on it until it died. The second brute flanked them from the side and smashed their cover causing them to scatter. Shepherd charged his Venom shotgun as the brute turned around. It charged once more, but this time Shepherd rolled under it and blasted it from behind. Garrus loaded his armor-piercing ammo for himself and Tali and they went to town on the brute until it died. However, they had more enemies to face as more reaper troops fell from the sky.

"Damn it, Cortez, what happened to almost there?!" Shepherd asked "I need that bird now!" A blast then blew back the husks. Shepherd looked up and saw it was Cortez and the fixed shuttle. "Took you long enough!"

"Sorry, Commander had a small problem with the servos!" Cortez said. "But now, I'm here, just in time too, you have two more brutes incoming!" Shepherd took out his Hydra and pulled the trigger, taking out at least one of them. Garrus and Tali took care of the stragglers and Cortez took on the second brute. For a while, the team seemed to be holding their own, until…the Kodiak stated to server wildly.

"Another pulse hit me! Flight controls are scrambled!" Cortez said. Cortez lost control of the shuttle and it crashed on the other side of the barge.

"Shit! Cortez is in trouble, get to him!" The team went to the shuttle only to be stopped by more reaper troops. They fought their way through, but more blocked their way.

"Commander, I've got enemy contact! Under fire!"

"Hang on!" Shepherd said. "Tali clear us a path!" Tali nodded and took out the Arc Projector and fired, allowing the team through to Cortez who was fighting back the husks. "You alright?"

"Yeah, but shuttle's a mess…" Cortez said. The team then heard a large group of growls coming closer.

"Worry about that later, let's focus on surviving this first"


End file.
